McMaster Engineers Create Catheter Coating that Reduces Blood Coagulation

McMaster University scholars have developed a novel technique to minimize the ongoing problem of catheter-associated blood clotting.

Researchers within The Didar Lab and the Michael G. DeGroote Institute for Infectious Disease Research, in collaboration with the Thrombosis & Atherosclerosis Research Institute (TaARI), McMaster Department of Mechanical Engineering, and the School of Biomedical Engineering created a novel surface modification process that can be applied to catheters to lower the risk of blood thrombosis.

Didar’s omniphobic, lubricant-infused catheter coating produced through chemical vapor disposition (CVD) of hydrophobic organosilanes significantly reduces blood clotting when compared with uncoated catheters. Further, the CVD catheters are more effective in preventing blood coagulation than other commonly used coating techniques, as well as more reproducible and less disruptive to the catheters.

The CVD method is a simple, straightforward, and non-invasive procedure, with the potential to not only prevent catheter thrombosis, but also thrombosis associated with other widely used blood-contacting medical devices.

“Blood-contacting medical devices such as catheters, heart valves and vascular grafts are prone to thrombosis, which can lead to thromboembolic complications and device failure,” explained Maryam Badv, PhD candidate, School of Biomedical Engineering and lead author on the study. “Catheter thrombosis can lead to deep-vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism; complications that often delay treatment, extend hospital stay and increase healthcare costs.”

“We hope our proposed surface modification process is a step forward towards obtaining blood compatible catheters and hopefully it would be used in future studies and on other medical devices,” added Badv.