BIOPLASTIQUE - A NEW BIPHASIC POLYMER FOR MINIMALLY INVASIVE INJECTION IMPLANTATION

The search for prosthetic materials that are biocompatible, nontoxic, and permanent led the authors to develop a micronized, inert, biphasic polymer particle for permanent soft tissue augmentation which neither migrates nor is absorbed by the body. Placed in a bioexcretable gel carrier, these textured microparticles are easily implanted using a specially designed blunt-tipped cannula with local anesthesia on an outpatient basis. Research using this implant material, Bioplastique(TM) (Bioplasty, St. Paul, MN), in rabbits has shown that when the textured particle size is maintained within a critical range, neither particle migration nor storage disease occurs. The gel carrier is rapidly phagocytized and replaced by fibrin matrix within a few days. Host collagen then gradually forms a fibrotic capsule around each textured particle, making use of the naturally occurring foreign body reaction to create a stable inplant. After being followed for over two years, Bioplastique has proven to be useful in many clinical applications with few complications.