An assembly and associated method for a commissure of a prosthetic heart valve is disclosed. As one example, a method includes forming each of a plurality of commissures with a plurality of leaflets by pairing a first commissure tab of a first leaflet with an adjacent, second commissure tab of a second leaflet, folding a support strip over an inner reinforcing element, positioning the folded support strip between the first and second commissure tabs, and attaching first and second outer reinforcing elements to the first and second commissure tabs, respectively, via stitching, the stitching extending over at least a portion of the first reinforcing element opposite a fold region of the support strip, and, for each commissure, securing end portions of the support strip to a respective support portion of a frame of the prosthetic heart valve.

A method of fabricating a casting, the method including applying a substrate to a sacrificial mold, the sacrificial mold including a shaped non-planar receiving surface to receive the substrate and provide a casting of the substrate having a shaped structure corresponding to the receiving surface; and subjecting the sacrificial mold and casting to freeze drying conditions and sublimating the sacrificial mold from the casting to form a cast article including the shaped non-planar structure.

A crystallized bioabsorbable polymer scaffold comprises a polymer composition of poly (L-lactide-co-tri-methylene-carbonate) or poly (D-lactide-co-tri-methylene-carbonate) or poly (L-lactide-co-ε-caprolactone) or poly (D-lactide-co-ε-caprolactone) in the form of block copolymers of blocky copolymers, wherein the scaffold is cold-bendable.

The disclosure provides a method for preparing a structured hydrogel and a method for preparing a hydrogel heart valve. In the disclosure, the method includes: providing a photocurable hydrogel ink; establishing a three-dimensional digital model, and conducting photocuring 3D printing on the photocurable hydrogel ink to obtain a printed hydrogel; and immersing the printed hydrogel in water to obtain the structured functional hydrogel, wherein the photocurable hydrogel ink comprises: a high-density hydrogen-bonded unsaturated monomer, a photoinitiator, a dye, and a solvent; and the solvent comprises water and dimethyl sulfoxide.

Provided in the present application is a preparation method for a double-layer osteochondral tissue repair stent, comprising: formulating a first feed solution, the first feed solution comprising recombinant collagen, sodium hyaluronate, and hydroxyapatite; formulating a second feed solution, the second feed solution comprising recombinant collagen and sodium hyaluronate; freeze-drying the first feed solution and the second feed solution and forming a gel-like double-layer structure; and adding the gel-like double-layer structure into a crosslinking agent for crosslinking. The present method also relates to a double-layer osteochondral tissue repair stent, comprising: a first layer composed of raw materials including recombinant collagen, sodium hyaluronate, and hydroxyapatite; and a second layer composed of raw materials including recombinant collagen and sodium hyaluronate. The double-layer osteochondral tissue repair stent prepared by the present application has excellent mechanical properties, good biocompatibility, and a suitable degradation rate and, after degradation, the stent material can be reused as raw material for the formation of new bone, thus implementing osteochondral tissue repair.

Aspects of an expandable sheath can be used in conjunction with a catheter assembly to introduce a prosthetic device, such as a heart valve, into a patient. Such aspects can minimize trauma to the vessel by allowing for temporary expansion of a portion of the introducer sheath to accommodate the delivery apparatus, followed by a return to the original diameter once the prosthetic device passes through. Some aspects can include various configurations of the sheath that comprise an elongated tube having a disclosed composition that can form an outer jacket or a strain relief jacket or can be used as the outer layer of the sheath. Aspects of the present expandable sheath can avoid the need for multiple insertions for the dilation of the vessel and reduce the push force needed for passage of the medical device, thus offering advantages over prior art introducer sheaths.

A tapered implantable device includes an ePTFE tubular member having a tapered length portion. The tapered length portion provides rapid recovery properties. The tapered length portion can feature a microstructure that includes a multiplicity of bent fibrils.

The invention relates to a process for making a medical component such as a medical implant for example a graft or stent-graft, said medical component comprising ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibers, a medical component obtainable by said process as well as uses of said process and medical component.

Methods are disclosed including thermally processing a scaffold to increase the radial strength of the scaffold when the scaffold is deployed from a crimped state to a deployed state such as a nominal deployment diameter. The thermal processing may further maintain or increase the expansion capability of the scaffold when expanded beyond the nominal diameter.

A method of forming an implant includes positioning a first mesh component of the implant within a second mesh component of the implant to form an implant assembly. The implant assembly is manipulated to join the first mesh component with the second mesh component.