MEDICAL IMPLANTS OF STRETCH-CRYSTALLIZABLE ELASTOMERS AND METHODS OF IMPLANTATION

摘要

Reduced trauma medical implants(10), and methods for their use aredisclosed wherein at least a portion of theimplant is formed of a stretch crystallizableelastomeric material formulated to exhibitthe property of stretch crystallizationupon substantial elongation of theimplant to form stable, small incisionimplant configurations having at leastone dimension substantially reducedfor insertion through a surgical incisionthat is small relative to the incision sizenecessary to implant the un-stretchedimplant. Exemplary embodimentsinclude intraocular implants formed ofoptically clear, high refractive indexstretch crystallizable silicone elastomersformulated to stretch crystalize at nearambient temperatures upon elongationsgreater than or equal to 300 %, and torecover their original configuration immediately upon exposure to bodytemperature following implantation.