Low-Cost Sprayable Barrier for the Prevention of Surgical Adhesions

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Adhesion formation after intra-abdominal surgery poses a significant health risk, cited as a leading cause of small bowel obstruction and female infertility. Methods to prevent these adhesions are currently limited to barrier films which are difficult to place and are often restricted to use at the surgical incision site, leaving the bulk f the abdominal contents unprotected. To address this need, Luna Innovations proposes the development of a low-cost, sprayable barrierthat will flow around and adhere to the internal tissues of the abdominal cavity, providing protection from adhesions for all internal surfaces during healing. Because of the nature of the components of this product, the proposed material will be biocompatible and biodegradable as it provides more complete protection than is available from currently marketed products. This program will focus on the refinement of the material components and delivery system to create the barrier formulations. Prototype formulations will undergo a series of in vitro characterization tests to assess their ability to effectively serve as a barrier to adhesion formation. The efficacy of the most promising formulations will be assessed in vivo. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Luna Innovations will develop a low-cost, more effective alternative to current approaches for the prevention of postoperative adhesions distal to the incision after open abdominal surgery. The material will provide a low- cost andsprayable approach to prevent adhesions, which account for over 960,000 hospital care days and more than 2.3 billion in inpatient expenditures per year the product also has the potential to be adapted for use in a number of other biomedical applications including drug delivery and wound healing.