Lubricious Coating Technology from Bayer MaterialScience LLC Can be Applied to Inner Lumens of Catheters

Pittsburgh, PA, February 17, 2011 --(PR.com)-- Bayer MaterialScience LLC has expanded the application of its BaymedixTM CL 100, a lubricious surface treatment for medical devices, to include the inner lumens of catheter-based devices. Bayer has demonstrated successful modification of the inner lumen surface of microcatheters with inner diameters (IDs) as small as 0.0157 inches.

Whether on the inner or outer surfaces of catheters and other devices, the application of BaymedixTM CL 100 provides a durable coating with a low coefficient of wet friction. Since the product’s launch in February 2010, it has garnered widespread interest among medical device manufacturers. Besides observing improved performance in developmental devices attributable to BaymedixTM CL 100, these companies see potential using the product to reduce material usage and assembly cost.

Bayer anticipates that the capability to coat narrow inner lumens will be attractive to cardiovascular and neurovascular device designers. According to Bentley Mah, senior market development specialist for Bayer MaterialScience LLC, “For a while now, medical device designers have had to rely on plastics like PTFE and polyethylene to reduce friction inside of catheters and similar devices. But several of our customers are looking to take performance to the next level, and this has been difficult to do until now.” In particular, coated lumens may improve the interaction between catheters and guidewires or enable new designs better suited to access distal vasculature.

Distinct from other lubricious and hydrophilic coatings, BaymedixTM CL 100 is
directly grown onto the surface of the medical device rather than applied as a separate coating. This unconventional application technology, which uses a physical drying process, is part of why the BaymedixTM process can be applied to otherwise challenging surfaces like the inner diameters of long microcatheters.

The surface-grown nature of the coating also ensures the superb adhesion of the coating to its substrate. Jeff Motley, R&D manager for Bayer’s Medical Coatings Development Centre, explains, “The chemistry of the process ensures that wherever there is coating present, it is very strongly adhered by covalent bonds.” It also means an especially thin coating of only a few microns.

BaymedixTM CL 100 can be adapted to many substrates but is especially suitable for application to elastomeric materials such as polyether block amide (Pebax®), thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), and nylon. In laboratory studies devices coated with BaymedixTM CL 100 show a low coefficient of friction, and maintain this high lubricity through many stress cycles.

Bayer MaterialScience has several customers evaluating inner lumen coatings on their devices, and is seeking additional customer feedback on the concept. Bayer’s Medical Coatings Development Centre in Sheffield, England provides technical support and applications development for BaymedixTM CL 100 and other products in the BaymedixTM line of materials for medical devices.

Bayer MaterialScience LLC is one of the leading producers of polymers and high-performance plastics in North America and is part of the global Bayer MaterialScience business with approximately 14,300 employees at 30 production sites around the world and 2009 sales of 7.5 billion euros. The company manufactures high-tech polymer materials and develops innovative solutions for products used in many areas of daily life. The main segments served are the automotive, electrical and electronics, construction, medical, and sports and leisure industries. Sustainability is central to Bayer MaterialScience LLC’s business and is based around the key areas of innovation, product stewardship, excellence in corporate management, social responsibility and respect for the environment.

Pebax® is a registered trademark of Arkema Inc.

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