Engineering Commons^™

Characterization And Implementation Of A Decellularized Porcine Vessel As A Biologic Scaffold For A Blood Vessel Mimic, Aubrey N. Smith

Master's Theses

Every 34 seconds, someone in the United States suffers from a heart attack. Most heart attacks are caused by atherosclerotic build up in the coronary arteries, occluding normal blood flow. Balloon angioplasty procedures in combination with a metal stent often result in successful restoration of normal blood flow. However, bare metal stents often lead to restenosis and other complications. To compensate for this problem, industry has created drug-eluting stents to promote healing of the artery wall post stenting. These stents are continually advancing toward better drug-eluting designs and methods, resulting in a need for fast and reliable pre-clinical testing modalities. …