Soft tissue implants and methods for making same

Abstract

The present invention features soft tissue implants comprising major ( 34 ) and minor struts ( 36 ) and methods for making same. The implants can include biocompatible film ( 30 ) that is rendered porous due to the inclusion of uniformly or non-uniformly patterned cells ( 32 ), and the film has a thickness of less than about (0.015 inches) in the event the starting material is non-porous and less than about (0.035 inches) in the event the starting material is a microporous film. Multi-film implants can also be made.

1 . A non-woven soft tissue implant comprising a porous biocompatible film having a plurality of cells, a thickness of less than about 0.015 inches, a plurality of major struts having a width of about 0.020 inches to about 0.100 inches and a plurality of minor struts having a width of about 0.001 inches to about 0.024 inches. 
   
   
       2 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 1 , wherein the porous biocompatible film comprises a non-absorbable polymer or copolymer. 
   
   
       3 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 2 , wherein the non-absorbable polymer or copolymer comprises polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, polytetrafluoroethylene, polyaryletherketone, nylon, fluorinated ethylene propylene, polybutester, or silicone. 
   
   
       4 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 1 , wherein the porous biocompatible film comprises an absorbable polymer or copolymer. 
   
   
       5 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 4 , wherein the absorbable polymer or copolymer comprises polyglycolic acid (PGA), polylactic acid (PLA), polycaprolactone, or polyhydroxyalkanoate. 
   
   
       6 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 1 , wherein the porous biocompatible film comprises a biological material. 
   
   
       7 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 6 , wherein the biological material is collagen. 
   
   
       8 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 1 , wherein the major strut is about 0.050 inches wide. 
   
   
       9 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 1 , wherein one or more of the cells in the plurality of cells has a diameter, measured along the longest axis of the cell, of about 10μ to about 10,000μ. 
   
   
       10 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 9 , wherein one or more of the cells in the plurality of cells has a diameter, measured along the longest axis of the cell, of about 1,500μ to about 5,000μ. 
   
   
       11 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 9 , wherein one or more of the cells in the plurality of cells has a diameter, measured along the longest axis of the cell, of about 50μ to about 100μ. 
   
   
       12 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of cells is essentially square, rectangular, or diamond-shaped. 
   
   
       13 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of cells is essentially round or oval-shaped. 
   
   
       14 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 1 , wherein one or more of the cells of the plurality have essentially the same shape as the cell shown in Mesh2, Mesh2C, Mesh3, or Mesh4. 
   
   
       15 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 1 , wherein the thickness of the porous biocompatible film is or is less than about 0.014 inches, is or is less than about 0.013 inches, is or is less than about 0.012 inches, is or is less than about 0.011 inches, is or is less than about 0.010 inches, is or is less than about 0.009 inches, is or is less than about 0.008 inches, is or is less than about 0.007 inches, is or is less than about 0.006 inches, is or is less than about 0.005 inches, is or is less than about 0.004 inches, is or is less than about 0.003 inches, is or is less than about 0.002 inches, or is about 0.001 inch. 
   
   
       16 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 1 , wherein the porous biocompatible film has atraumatic edges. 
   
   
       17 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 1 , wherein the porous biocompatible film is at least about 2.5 cm long along a first side and no more than about 45.0 cm long along a second side. 
   
   
       18 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 1 , wherein the implant is flexible along two axes. 
   
   
       19 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 18 , wherein the plurality of cells comprises a cell pattern containing undulating elements comprising a sinusoidal element. 
   
   
       20 . The non-woven soft tissue implant of  claim 18 , wherein each of the cells in the plurality of cells has a plurality of undulating elements in the form of a repeating pattern. 
   
   
       21 - 49 . (canceled)