The neurovascular system (NVS) controls our body functions and plays a role in everything we do. It includes a complex network of blood vessels that supply the brain and spinal cord with freshly oxygenated blood. Even a minor problem with these blood vessels can have a huge impact on the brain and nervous system. In fact, it can be life-threatening and permanently affect the ability to interact with the surrounding environment.
Neurovascular surgeons use a range of delicate, fine-diameter medical devices. These tools diagnose and treat conditions affecting blood flow to the brain and spinal cord. Neurovascular Devices can be coated with hydrophilic medical coatings. These lubricious coatings reduce friction. In turn, they ensure smoother interactions between the devices and blood vessels and surrounding tissues. They also significantly improve navigation through the nervous system’s complex anatomy and tortuous vasculature.
In this in-depth guide we cover how hydrophilic coatings for neurovascular devices help enhance their precision and reliability. If you are involved in biomedical engineering, you will not want to miss how you can use these coatings to meet your product goals.
Common Coatings for Neurovascular Medical Devices
Neurovascular devices are used to treat conditions related to the nervous and vascular systems. Examples include strokes, arteriovenous malformation (AVM), and migraines.
Biomedical engineers use different surface coatings to modify and enhance the devices’ performance and safety.
The right choice depends heavily on the product requirements for the device, including the application or use.
Below are some of the most common types of coatings for neurovascular medical devices:
- Hydrophilic Coatings: These are “slippery-when-wet”, lubricious coatings that are applied to a device’s surface. Their main purpose is to reduce friction, improve maneuverability, enhance precision, and reduce patient trauma. They absorb water from the surrounding environment to form a thin, lubricious layer of hydrogels on the medical device’s surface. They are made up of hydrophilic polymers such as Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and Polyethylene glycol (PEG). Hydromer® hydrophilic coatings can solve multiple needs in a single coating. For instance, they can reduce friction, while also providing thromboresistance, antimicrobial properties, and more.
- Antithrombogenic Coatings: Thrombosis (blood clotting) is a common complication related to neurovascular procedures. It can lead to serious health issues, such as atrial fibrillation, strokes, and heart attacks. To avoid life-threatening complications, thromboresistant coatings are applied to most neurovascular devices inserted into the blood vessels.
- Antimicrobial Coatings: The growth of microorganisms such as bacteria and fungi can drastically increase healthcare costs. It can also lead to extended hospital stays due to infections. Though the chances of infections are rare in neurovascular procedures, they can be catastrophic. That’s why antimicrobial coatings are used to prevent the growth of microorganisms and reduce the risk of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs).
- Drug-Eluting Coatings: These coatings release a therapeutic drug dose over the desired period. They deliver localized therapy to avoid inflammation and restenosis. They can be applied to medical implants, such as stents, to release drugs and prevent the narrowing of the arteries post-surgery.
- Hydrophobic Coatings: In contrast to hydrophilic coatings, these coatings repel water or biological fluids. Their main goal is to reduce protein adhesion and resist clot formation or biofouling. They maintain a dry surface throughout the operational procedures. Such coatings are based on silicone and Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE).
Top 5 Benefits of Hydromer® Hydrophilic Coatings For Neurovascular Devices
Hydrophilic medical coatings offer a multifunctional solution for neurovascular devices, such as flow diverters, intracranial stents, and endovascular shunts.
There are plenty of reasons to apply hydrophilic coatings to neurovascular devices. Below we discuss five of their biggest benefits.
1. Improved Navigation
Hydrophilic coatings offer exceptional lubricity. They significantly reduce the friction between the medical device and the delicate blood vessel wall. They attract water from the body, creating a low-friction, slippery surface and ensuring easy vascular access.
This is extremely beneficial for a few key reasons.
First, such reduced friction and improved navigation significantly minimizes patient trauma while improving the effectiveness of the device.
Second, it also makes the surgeon’s job much easier. For example, one doctor reported:
“I can get 90-95% of the device performance through materials and design criteria. However, the last 5-10% of the desired device performance is only achievable through surface modification coatings.”
2. Enhanced Precision
Neurovascular devices must have a high degree of lubricity to travel through the brain’s narrow, tortuous, and delicate blood vessels. Hydrophilic medical coatings ensure smooth motion and reduced kickback even through the sharp curves. The reduced mechanical force required to navigate the tortuous vascular pathways significantly improves the device’s precision and trackability.
As mentioned in the point above, hydrophilic coatings make the surgeon’s job much easier.
3. Reduced Risk of Thrombosis
Clotting can be life-threatening if not treated. Intricate neurovasculature demands medical devices that are both safe and reliable. Modern hydrophilic coatings are custom-formulated to reduce thrombogenicity. As a result, such coatings drastically improve the performance and safety of neurovascular medical devices.
4. Antimicrobial Properties
Infections associated with neurological devices may lead to serious consequences. Hydromer® advanced hydrophilic coatings have antimicrobial and drug-eluting properties that help us prevent infections. They can be engineered to carry therapeutic agents and ensure localized antimicrobial drug delivery.
5. Patient Comfort
Hydrophilic coatings significantly minimize mechanical irritation and vessel trauma during operational procedures. This leads to fewer postoperative symptoms, such as headaches and localized inflammation.
Neurovascular Devices that can be Coated with Hydrophilic Coatings
Here is a list of commonly used neurovascular devices that are coated with hydrophilic coatings:
Microcatheters
Hydrophilic-coated neurovascular microcatheters allow minimally invasive treatments in challenging body parts. These coatings provide excellent lubricity. This allows the microcatheters to easily navigate through the tortuous vasculatures of the head and neck. Their main purpose is to deliver embolic agents, coils, or stents to the target site to treat neurological conditions such as cerebral aneurysms and ischemic stroke.
Guidewires
There are various types of guidewires used in neurology. They are thin, flexible wires that guide medical devices such as microcatheters. Many of them, including coronary and neuro-interventional guidewires, are coated with hydrophilic coatings. Hydrophilic coatings reduce friction between the guidewire surface and vessel wall during neurointerventional procedures.
Learn more about the use and benefits of hydrophilic guidewire coatings.
Flow Diverters
These devices treat brain aneurysms. They are a type of stent that diverts blood flow away from the aneurysms to promote healing. Advanced hydrophilic coatings applied on flow diverters ensure accurate placement and biocompatibility.
Thrombectomy Devices
These devices are particularly useful in treating acute ischemic stroke. They remove blood clots from cerebral arteries. They include devices such as stent retrievers, aspiration catheters, and distal access catheters.
These devices are coated with lubricious, hydrophilic coatings to ensure smooth insertion, navigation, and removal during the operational procedure. The hydrophilic coatings also ensure better trackability and enhanced outcomes.
Balloon Catheters
Balloon catheters are among the most used medical devices in neurology. They treat vascular conditions, including aneurysms and arteriovenous malformations (AVMs).
Hydrophilic coatings are applied to balloon catheters to improve navigation and reduce tissue irritation.
Cerebrospinal Fluid Shunts
These are specialized neurovascular implants. They drain excess cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from the brain to another part of the body. They are placed in a fluid-filled space and are prone to infections due to Staphylococcus epidermidis, S. aureus, and E. coli. They are coated with hydrophilic coatings to prevent bacterial adhesion and ensure biocompatibility.
Hydromer® Hydrophilic Coatings for Neurovascular Devices
Hydromer®, Inc. is an advanced hydrophilic coatings manufacturer with 40+ years of experience. Our custom medical coatings are trusted by some of the industry’s leading medical device manufacturers. From R&D to custom coatings and contract coating services you will get a full-service partner to help you meet your goals.
We also understand the importance of safe and effective neurovascular devices. Our team includes regulatory experts to offer guidance in the development process. And our company uses only the highest-quality ingredients to formulate and manufacture our hydrophilic coatings.
In terms of functionality, Hydromer® coatings can be custom-formulated to have the following properties:
- Highly lubricious
- Thromboresistance
- High wettability
- Antimicrobial
- Drug-eluting capabilities
- Biocompatibility
- Low particulate
- Enhanced adhesion
- High durability
Our coatings are available as both thermal-cure and UV-cure medical coatings.
Work With Us
Do you need to develop a custom medical coating to meet your product requirements? If so, we can help regardless of where you are in the product development process.
We have the technology and expertise to develop a coating for your device. Our team includes highly qualified Ph.D. chemists, scientists, engineers, and regulatory experts. We can help you
But what sets us apart from our competitors is the wide range of support services we offer our medical device partners. Here is a quick list of support services provided by Hydromer:
- Research and Development (R&D) services
- Contract coating services
- Worldwide supply of high-quality medical coatings
- Specialized Analytical Testing
- Custom Machine Building
- Turn-key Operations
- Technology Transfer Services
- Technical consulting and support services
Contact our team of experts today to learn more about our custom coatings and services.
