Inner surface modification of the tube-like elements for medical applications

The objective of this work was to modify the inner surfaces of polymer tubes to improve their biocompatibility with blood cells. New materials that were designed to be placed in contact with blood during forced blood circulation were studied. The inner surfaces of these tubes were covered with anti-thrombogenic coatings. Materials based on silicon carbide, silicon oxide, and silicon nitride were deposited. Depending on the topography and the chemical nature of the inner vessel surface, a non-thrombogenic bio-surface, also called a neointima, was formed. Several expected applications of this work are discussed, including archetypal human blood vessels, the design of a nanostructural artificial substitute, optimising the surface using vacuum-coating techniques, characterising materials on multiple scales, and studying the blood-material interaction under dynamic conditions in an arterial flow environment. Several promising solutions for inhibiting the activation of the blood-clotting cascade via the use of appropriate surface architectures have been obtained. These solutions may be applied in advanced biocompatible cardiovascular implants.