Kinetics and mechanism of biodegradation of (co)polyglycolide sutures

Abstract

Biodegradation in vivo of modified and unmodified PG (polyglycolide) and PGL (copolymer glycolide — L — lactide) monofilament sutures were studied using 1H‐ NMR, wide and small angle X‐ray scattering, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), electron microscopy (EM), Fourier transform (FT) Raman spectroscopy methods. It was found that the process includes a steady‐state and accelerated stages of biodegradation. The suture biostability depends on polymer morphology changing widely over the suture draw ratio. The modification of polymer chain results in an increase in suture useful lifetime without significant changes of complete polymer degradation time. It was also established the important role of weak intermolecular hydrogen bonds such as CH–‐O=C in the suture stability.