Method for producing implantable ligament and tendon prostheses and prostheses produced thereby

摘要

A method of making implantable ligament and tendon prostheses from natural collagen-containing tissues is described. The tissues used are those wherein the collagen fibers are aligned in one direction such as in ligaments or tendons. The method comprises disrupting the interfibrillar matrix physically by mechanical means such as a roller or rollers in order to generate an expanded network of fibers that are more easily further treated chemically and which also generate a more favorable substrate for tissue ingrowth after implantation. Prostheses made from separated collagen fiber bundles which retain their natural configuration and length (as opposed to reconstituted collagen), exhibit improved softness and flexibility when compared with prostheses made from conventional chemically fixed (e.g., glutaraldehyde cross-linked) tendons which have not been separated as described herein. Another implementation of the developed new technology allows for the formation of composites between the dissociated collagen fibers involving two or more tissues or between collagen and synthetic fibers. These composites can also include absorbable materials.