A medical elastomer, Medalist®, plays a key role in a device that simplifies the delicate and often complicated deployment of catheters and guide wires in a minimally invasive alternative to surgery known as an “interventionalist” procedure.
Interventionalist methods, such as the placement of stents to open blocked arteries, typically require the insertion of catheters with guide wires into blood vessels and may involve more than one pair of these devices, as in the case of blockages in both main and branch arteries. The Teirstein Edge™ device, developed by Paul S. Teirstein, M.D., lets interventionalists organize guide wires prior to insertion into the catheters, keeping them neatly separated and readily identifiable while allowing precise control of their movement during procedures. The device incorporates clips for attachment to surgical towels and has a curved underside that enables it to lie on a flat surface or over a patient’s leg.
Using two-component injection molding, elastomer specialist Da/Pro Rubber, Inc. produces the Teirstein Edge device for Dr. Teirstein’s company, Shepherd Scientific™. Da/Pro molds Medalist MD-305 onto six sites in a one-piece ABS base, forming slits for the placement of up to three catheter/guide wire pairs. The rubber-like traction of the Medalist compound and its elastomeric “give” enable the slits to hold the catheters and wires securely while permitting them to be adjusted or removed without being bent. The intricate design of the inside edges of the slit accommodates devices of different diameters and allows forward and backward movement or, at the bottom of the slits, no movement at all.
“Because interventionist practitioners are hypersensitive to the ‘feel’ of the devices used in their procedures, we went through a number of prototypes, varying the slit geometry and durometer until we arrived at just the right combination,” said William D. (Bill) Morrison, plant manager at Da/Pro’s facility in Newburyport, MA. “We considered several other thermoplastic elastomers but chose the Medalist compound because it chemically bonds with the ABS substrate and was already compliant with the relevant regulations.”
The Medalist program for medical manufacturers now includes 28 standard high-purity elastomer compounds, along with a comprehensive body of test data and resources for designers and processors. Compounds are available with Shore A hardness from 5 to 87 and include clear, translucent, and opaque formulations.
Teknor Apex
www.medalistmd.com
Da/Pro Rubber, Inc.
www.daprorubber.com
Sheperd Scientific
www.shepherdscientific.com
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