Claims
- 1. A method for assisting the restoration of periodontal tissue in a periodontal pocket, comprising:
- placing a liquid mixture of a biodegradable, curable, thermosetting prepolymer, curing agent and a water-soluble material into the periodontal pocket;
- wherein the water-soluble material dissipates into periodontal fluids, the thermosetting prepolymer cures in situ by formation of covalent bonds to form a water-immiscible thermoset polymer as a solid biodegradable implant, and the dissipation of the water-soluble material creates pores within the solid biodegradable implant having sizes in the range of about 3 to about 500 microns, the solid biodegradable implant having a porosity in the range of about 5 to 95 percent provided by the pores, and the sizes of the pores and porosity being effective to promote cell growth.
- 2. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein said implant includes pores having a size in the range of 20 to 200 microns.
- 3. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein said water-soluble material is selected from the group consisting of sugars, salts, and water-soluble polymers.
- 4. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein said water-soluble material is present in an amount of about 5 to 85 percent by weight based upon the weight of said polymer.
- 5. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein said implant further comprises a biologically active agent selected from the group consisting of antimicrobial agents, antibiotics and tissue repair mediators.
- 6. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein said thermosetting prepolymer is an acrylic-ester-terminated prepolymer and a curing agent is added to said prepolymer prior to placing the mixture.
- 7. A method in accordance with claim 6, wherein said prepolymer comprises poly(DL-lactide-co-caprolactone).
- 8. A method for retarding apical migration of epithelial cells along a root surface of a tooth comprising placing a liquid mixture of a biodegradable, curable, thermosetting prepolymer, curing agent and water-soluble material into said periodontal pocket; wherein said water-soluble material dissipates into periodontal fluids and the curable thermosetting prepolymer cures in situ to form a water-immiscible thermoset polymer as a solid biodegradable barrier adjacent to said surface, and said dissipation of the water-soluble material creates pores within said solid biodegradable barrier having sizes in the range of about 3 to about 500 microns; said solid biodegradable barrier having porosity in the range of 5 to 95% provided by said pores; and the sizes of said pores and porosity being effective to promote cell growth.
- 9. A method in accordance with claim 8, wherein said thermosetting prepolymer is an acrylic-ester-terminated prepolymer and a curing agent is added to said prepolymer prior to placing the mixture.
- 10. A method in accordance with claim 9, wherein said prepolymer comprises poly(DL-lactide-co-caprolactone).
- 11. A method for promoting guided tissue regeneration in a periodontal pocket comprising: placing a liquid mixture of a biodegradable, curable, thermosetting prepolymer, curing agent and a water-soluble material into a periodontal pocket; wherein said water-soluble material dissipates into periodontal fluids and said thermosetting prepolymer cures in-situ to form a water-immiscible thermoset polymer as a solid biodegradable implant, and said dissipation of the water-soluble material creates pores within said solid biodegradable implant having sizes in the range of about 3 to 500 microns; said biodegradable implant having a porosity in the range of 5% to 95% provided by said pores; and the sizes of said pores and porosity being effective to create cell growth.
- 12. A method in accordance with claim 11, wherein said thermosetting prepolymer is an acrylic-ester-terminated prepolymer and a curing agent is added to said prepolymer prior to placing the mixture.
- 13. A method in accordance with claim 12, wherein said prepolymer comprises poly(DL-lactide-co-caprolactone).
Parent Case Info
This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 07/765,137, filed Sep. 25, 1991, abandoned, which is a divisional of Ser. No. 07/384,416, filed Jul. 24, 1989 now U.S. Pat. No. 5,077,049.
US Referenced Citations (16)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
2223027 |
Aug 1989 |
GBX |
Non-Patent Literature Citations (1)
Entry |
K. Juni et al., Control of Release Rate of Bleomycin From Polyactic Acid Microspheres by Additives, Chem. Pharm. Bull. 33(4) 1609-1614 (1985). |
Divisions (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
384416 |
Jul 1989 |
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Continuations (1)
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Number |
Date |
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Parent |
765137 |
Sep 1991 |
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