The commonly used metallic stents have many disadvantages, such as corrosion, infection and restenosis, leading to health complications for the patient, or even to their death.
Although there are different types of stents, such as pharmacological stents, there is no “ideal” stent capable of eliminating the disadvantages of commercial stents.
Thus, the main objective is the development of a fibrous materials based stent able to eliminate or minimize the disadvantages of metal stents, increasing the life of the stent and the patient’s well-being. In addition, the main innovation of this work is the incorporation of silver-based nanoparticles or nanocoatings on the surface of the stent, allowing for their release in a controlled manner over time, providing continuous antimicrobial effect and preventing infection.
By being incorporated directly into the stent surface, the silver provides an antimicrobial effect only during the period immediately following stent insertion. Thus the primary motivation of this work is to understand the mechanism of silver release, in order to optimize the antimicrobial properties, and minimize the disadvantages associated with existing metal stents.
This project is being carried out withint the framework of the PhD studies of the researcher Rita Rebelo under the guidance of Prof. Raul Fangueiro and the co-supervision of Sandra Carvalho and Mariana Henriques.