Artificial blood vessels mimic human veins, offer breakthrough in heart surgery

In a breakthrough development, researchers at the University of Edinburgh have successfully created artificial blood vessels using 3D printing technology.

These innovative gel-like tubes closely resemble human veins and hold the potential to revolutionize heart bypass surgery, improving outcomes for countless patients worldwide. Besides, they can reduce healthcare costs and increase accessibility to life-saving procedures.

It can also lead to personalized medicine in cardiovascular care while enabling the development of tailored artificial blood vessels to meet individual patient needs.

“The 3D graft can be made in thicknesses from 1 to 40 mm in diameter, for a range of applications, and its flexibility means that it could easily be integrated into the human body,” reads the press release.

Dr. Norbert Radacsi, the principal investigator of the study, stated that the results of their research addressed a long-standing challenge in the field of vascular tissue engineering, which was to produce a conduit with biomechanical properties similar to human veins.

“The vision of improved treatment options for patients with cardiovascular disease could become a reality,” Radacsi said .

Challenges in existing heart bypass surgeries

Heart bypass surgery is a common procedure performed to restore blood flow to the heart muscle when coronary arteries become blocked or narrowed.

Traditionally, this surgery has involved harvesting veins from the patient’s own body. However, this process can lead to complications like scarring, pain, and an increased risk of infection. Moreover, while small synthetic grafts offer an alternative, their integration into the body can be challenging, and they are prone to failure.

But these newly-developed 3D-printed blood vessels offer a promising solution to these challenges. By providing a readily available and customizable alternative to harvested veins, this technology could eliminate the need for additional surgical sites on the patient’s body.

The improved integration potential of these artificial vessels could also lead to better long-term outcomes for bypass patients.

Two-stage process

The research team achieved this milestone through a two-stage process.

First, they employed a 3D printer equipped with a rotating spindle to produce tubular grafts from a water-based gel . Then, they reinforced these grafts through electrospinning, a technique that uses high voltage to apply an ultra-thin coating of biodegradable polyester nanofibers.

The resulting artificial vessels exhibited strength comparable to natural blood vessels and possess flexibility that suggests seamless integration into the human body. They can be produced in various sizes, from 1 to 40 mm in diameter, making them adaptable to diverse applications in vascular surgery.

“Our hybrid technique opens up new and exciting possibilities for the fabrication of tubular constructs in tissue engineering,” expressed Dr Faraz Fazal, lead author of the study.

Expanding possibilities and human trials

The research can also help in the other fields of regenerative medicine, thanks to its ability to create complex, biomimetic structures through 3D printing and electrospinning.

Notably, the researchers now plan to test the artificial blood vessels in animal models in the next phase. If the trials go successful and results are encouraging, they would move on to testing the 3D-printed artificial vessels in humans.

Considering the fact that cardiovascular diseases are currently a leading cause of death across the world, innovations like this are of utmost significance.