Medical textile products development

Figure 16.2 shows the product development process from the beginning, when an idea is formed, to the point when customers can use the product. The product development cycle normally begins with an idea to serve a particular customer need, followed by a series of research, development, manufacturing, marketing, distribution, customer service, and other related commercial activities that comprise a full product value chain. Because of the various types of risks involved, the success of medical textile product development depends on the careful execution of the many tasks that are needed to complete the development process. It has been reported that on average, for every 100 projects that go into development, 63 get killed before the final stage, 12 are... 

At the technical level, medical textile product development often involves a multidisciplinary approach, beginning with a theoretical concept of the product. As shown in Figure 16.6, the technical development of a medical textile product proceeds from... 

This chapter aims to present the current application fields of medical textiles, what 3D textiles currently contribute to health care and medicine with an emphasis on some specific strong lines of 3D medical textiles as well as to indicate the potential for new initiatives and further development based on key aspects of different 3D textiles techniques and manufacturing specifics, as well as new textile materials. It is further recognised that to be able to fully capitalise on emerging possibilities of textile applications in health care and medicine, the textile industry may need to alter its current approach to textile product development. 

The production and utilisafion of textile materials in medical textiles started since the beginning of the civilisation. In time, the function and expectation from textile materials have expanded enormously, and they have developed and formed the final versions for present day. Nowadays, the technical textiles (smart textiles) account for a huge market due to widespread apphcations. Medical textiles are one of the fast growing sectors in technical textiles (Anand et al., 2006). The main expectations from medical textile products should be innovative and beneficial to the patients needs. Table 17.1 illustrates the application of different textile structures for use in... 

In addition to shape change, stimuli-responsive textiles can offer deformation forces which can be applied for medical applications. Orthopaedic smart textiles can be applied for corrective aids. Furthermore, the textile products developed may be used in clothing for protection against hazardous heat and light. Stimuli-responsive textiles with volume and shape changes may also be used for skincare products with controllable release of perfume, nutrition and drugs. In addition to... 

From a scientific point of view, medical textiles are located at the interfaces between technical disciplines and life sciences. On the one hand, the technical aspect concerns textile engineering, material chemistry, process control, testing and certification, etc., which are needed for the manufacture of high-quality medical textile products. On the other hand, life sciences such as medicine, microbiology, and other related subjects are required for the development of functional performances of these products. In practice, the different scientific and technical disciplines interact and overlap with one another, with new developments in any one of these branches able to generate new innovations in others. For example, new superabsorbent and gel-forming substances invented in chemistry have been applied in the development of new baby diapers and adult incontinence products. 

Biocompatibility testing is an essential requirement for regulatory approval of medical devices such as medical textile products, and it is important to follow strict testing protocol in order to avoid potential pitfalls that could delay a product launch. During the product development process, it would be sensible to start the process early enough to allow for thorough and complete testing. As with any business or scientific endeavor, it is important to communicate all details accurately and be as up to date as possible on all test requirements. It is often necessary to consult qualified professionals to provide the expertise that is required for the successful completion of the various tests. 

Research and development strategy for medical textile products... 

During the development of medical textile products, a firm s technology requirement can be divided into three categories. 

In addition to the core technologies, the development of medical textile products requires a number of other NPD capabilities which the medical textile companies may not possess. SAs offer an economical way to access these capabilities from external sources. In the search for NPD capabilities that can allow medical textile companies to develop products effectively and efficiently, strategic networking with a diverse range of partners can offer an ideal way of combining the companies internal capabilities in core technologies with external capabilities in the other important areas of the NPD process. 

Quality of the product and time to market are the two most important objectives of the product development process. This is because buyers and regulatory authorities both put their first priority on product quality, that is, inherent superiority over existing products. Second, the regulatory process is lengthy and technological advances have made the development of nonpatent-inMnging me-too products much easier. A reduced time to market is therefore important to extend the life span of the medical textile product under development. 

Overall, the successful development of medical textile products depends on a number of key success factors, which include the following. 

After a brief introduction to the human body, the book gives an overview of medical textile products and the processes used to manufacture them. Subsequent chapters cover superabsorbent textiles, functional wound dressings, bandages, sutures, implants, and other important medical textile technologies in detail. Biocompatibility testing and regulatory control are then addressed, and the book finishes with a review of research and development strategy for medical textile products. 

Results are presented of some preliminary tests of the irreversible immobilisation of poly(L,L-lactide) microspheres loaded with Triclosan antibacterial agent onto viscose non-woven structures. The research covered the production of a suspension containing microspheres loaded with Triclosan, tests on the bonding of microspheies with the base textile material and a quantitative assessment of the effect achieved (including microbiological tests). These results indicate the potential for development of new technologies for medical textiles. 11 refs. 

In a three-year research and development programme carried out at the University of Bolton, with financial support and collaboration fiom the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), UK and five medical textile companies, a number of itmovative instruments and products were developed and characterised. The major outcomes of this project are summarised here ... 

In textiles PVDF is used in form of monofilaments, hollow fibres and meltblown non-wovens. In architecture coatings of PVDF are applied to technical textiles of polyester or nylon. Recently results of electro spun PVDF have been published [And-08]. Polisilk SA, Manresa, Spain, is the only known producer of multifilWents, but having only one fineness (500 denier, 42 filaments and 1000 denier, 84 filaments). At RWTH-ITA yams with finer filaments and different cross section have been spurL Successful product development for medical purpose as well as promising properties and results were the motivation to intensify research on PVDF multifilamertt yams. 

Since several years the Institute of Textile Technology in Aachen (ITA) develops, in close interdisciplinary cooperation with engineers, chests, biologists and medical partners, production processes, products and testing methods in die field of medical textiles and biomaterials. 

The world textile industry is moving rrq)idly toward the manufacture of high-added value textile structures and products such as medical textiles, protective textiles and smart textiles. Textile materials used in medical devices are an important and growing part of the textile industry. Textiles present an excellent interface between the human body and medical treatment, and thus their continued development is an important part of medical diagnosis and therapy. 

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