Medical devices other applications

Some of the first applications of SBC in medical applications were for drainage units. The units are clear to allow ease of reading fluid levels, and breakage resistant to contain fluids if the parts are dropped or impacted. Applications have expanded in other medical devices and diagnostic equipment, including yankaeurs, centrifuge tubes and medical films. Other application areas include safety needles and various respiratory care devices. 

The flexible materials used for medical device packages include a plastic film that is usually a lamination or extrusion-coated material. The material most commonly used for flexible packaging applications is oriented polyester (e.g.. Mylar ), which is used as a base for properties such as dimensional stability, heat resistance, and strength with an adhesively laminated se layer such as low-density polyethylene, which provides the film structure with heat sealability. The variety of film combinations is virtually unlimited and the performance properties of the film can be customized to meet the requirements of the package specifications and the medical device. Other examples of film constructions are... 

Recent advances in the field of biomaterials and their medical applications indicate the significance and potential of various nanoceUulose in the development of novel classes of medical devices and applications in healthcare and veterinary medicine. The physical and mechanical properties of nanocellulose are attributes that enable nanocellulose membranes to function as effective temporary wound dressings. On the other hand, because implantable biomaterials (i.e., scaffolds) are also needed, a new approach has been undertaken to apply cellulose as a material entirely integrated into the body, either as a bone or skin graft. 

The light output of CsI(TI) peaks at about 565 nm, well beyond the optimum sensitivity for the normal photomultiplier tubes. For this reason, the light output is effectively low. To alleviate this problem, a photodiode detector can be used and the fact that that the light output is greater than that for Nal(Tl) can be capitalized on. CsI(Tl) detectors mounted on photodiodes are now produced commercially but their size is limited by the size of the photodiodes currently available. The small size and rugged nature of such devices makes them ideal for medical and other applications where space is at a premium. 

The CE Mark is not specific to medical devices, but is used generally to indicate to European consumers that a product conforms to applicable European performance and safety requirements. It can be found on electrical equipment, children s toys and safety equipment, among other products. 

There is a large number of available guidelines. These cover a very wide range of topics, and the company submitting an application for a pharmaceutical product should be aware of the contents of these documents and how they interact with other guidelines as well as the interpretation of the legislative requirements. It is necessary to be aware of the impact of guidelines in all areas within the pharmaceutical sector and, in some cases, within the medical device sector. Some of these effects are not obvious from the titles of the documents. 

These types of batteries are available in button and prismatic forms. Their main application is as power sources for hearing aids. Other applications include various specialty uses in the notebook computers, electronic pagers, portable battery chargers, various medical devices, the wireless crew communicator systems [18, 19]. 

Excimer lasers are of great importance for UV and vacuum UV (VUV) spectroscopy and photochemistry. They are also found in a wide range of applications. For example, they are used in micromachine medical devices, including refractive surgery, in photo-lithography for the microelectronics industry, for material processing, as optical pump sources for other type of lasers (dyes), and so on. More details about excimer lasers can be found in Rodhes (1979). 

Other DEHP substitutes currently in use, important in terms of produced volumes, are also terephthalates, e.g., di(2-ethyUiexyl) terephthalate (DEHT). DEHT is produced in volumes up to 50,000 tones [116], and the main applications are coatings, vinyl floorings, electric connectors, vinyl water stops, coating for clothes, bottle caps, toys, and medical devices [117]. 

Carbon nanotubes are unique materials with specific properties [42]. There is a considerable application potential for using nanotubes in the biomedical field. However, when such materials are considered for application in biomedical implants, transport of medicines and vaccines or as biosensors, their biocompatibility needs to be established. Other carbon materials show remarkable long-term biocompatibility and biological action for use as medical devices. Preliminary data on biocompatibility of nanotubes and other novel nanostructured materials demonstrate that we have to pay attention to their possible adverse effects when then-biomedical applications are considered. 

In the medical field, UV curable adhesives are used in fhe assembly of medical devices, such as syringes, valves, manifolds for filtering equipmenf, and arteriographs. In these applications, many dissimilar substrates, such as stainless steel, aluminum, glass, polycarbonate, polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), PVC, and other thermoplastics, are bonded. ... 

We have focused our attention on the prepolymer method for polyurethane development because we feel that it offers the researcher the greatest control of the molecule. We hope to encourage the scientific community to investigate other nonclassical polyurethane tools. If the pin posc of a device is purely physical, the large polyurethane manufacturers and chemists are the best resources for expertise. If, however, the intent is to experiment with a new polymerization technique for a particular medical or environmental application, the researcher must be able to assemble the component parts along lines with which the polyurethane industry may not be familiar. 

In this chapter, the use of membranes in medical devices is reviewed briefly. In terms of total membrane area produced, medical applications are at least equivalent to all industrial membrane applications combined. In terms of dollar value of the products, the market is far larger. In spite of this, little communication between these two membrane areas has occurred over the years. Medical and industrial membrane developers each have their own journals, societies and meetings, and rarely look over the fence to see what the other is doing. This book cannot reverse 50 years of history, but every industrial membrane technologist should at least be aware of the main features of medical applications of membranes. Therefore, in this chapter, the three most important applications—hemodialysis (the artificial kidney), blood oxygenation (the artificial lung) and controlled release pharmaceuticals—are briefly reviewed. 

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