NuAIR stent: A respiratory stent inspired by nature, achieved through cutting edge architecture and engineering

NuAIR 支架：一种受大自然启发的呼吸支架，通过尖端的建筑和工程实现

• 批准号: 710781
• 金额: $ 9.69万
• 依托单位: NORTHWICK PARK INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: GRD Proof of Concept
• 财政年份: 2016
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2016 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=710781
• 关键词: NuAIR; stent; respiratory; inspired; nature

Airway obstructions cause breathlessness and difficulty swallowing. They occur in up to 30%of lung cancer patients, where prognosis is often poor and palliative treatment the only option.Additionally, there were over 2,000 patients suffering from tracheomalacia (collapsed airway)and stenosis (abnormal narrowing of the airway) in the UK last year.The current gold standard treatment for airway obstruction is surgical resection. However,surgery is an invasive, time consuming procedure and complications such as infection mayarise during recovery. An alternative is to use Airway stents, hollow cylindrical prosthesesthat provide support. They can be deployed without surgery and provide significant relieffrom the discomfort associated with an obstructed airway, a marked increase in quality of life,and in many cases a prolonged lifespan.There are a number of Airway stents on the market, including silicone, metal and hybridstents. Each of these have significant shortcomings. Silicone stents tend to migrate and requirere positioning. Metal stents have a risk of airway perforation and are very difficult to removeor reposition. Hybrid stents are significantly more expensive than either silicone or metalstents. There is a growing, unmet need for the perfect Airway stent.We propose to create NuAIR, an Airway stent customised for patients that possesses all thecharacteristics of the perfect stent. It will be made using biocompatible collagen and asynthetic polymer to meet the physiological demands of the trachea. The design will beinspired by structural architecture found in nature. This will result in a stent that is strong yetflexible, using the minimal amount of material. NuAIR will be made by 3D-printing, a fastand cost effective method. Most importantly, this will allow customisation of stents based oncomputerised-tomography (CT) scans of individual patients. This will reduce unwantedmovement and increase comfort – key components of the ideal stent.

呼吸道阻塞会导致呼吸困难和吞咽困难。它们发生在高达30%的肺癌患者中，这些患者的预后往往很差，姑息治疗是唯一的选择。此外，去年英国有超过2000名患者患有气管软化(气管塌陷)和狭窄(气道异常狭窄)。目前呼吸道阻塞的金标准治疗是手术切除。然而，手术是一种侵入性的、耗时的过程，在康复过程中可能会出现感染等并发症。另一种选择是使用呼吸道支架，即提供支撑的中空圆柱形假体。它们无需手术即可使用，可显著缓解因呼吸道阻塞而引起的不适，显著提高生活质量，在许多情况下还可延长寿命。市场上有许多呼吸道支架，包括硅胶支架、金属支架和混合支架。其中每一个都有明显的缺点。硅胶支架容易移位和需要定位。金属支架有呼吸道穿孔的风险，而且很难取出或重新定位。复合支架的价格明显高于硅胶或金属支架。对完美的呼吸道支架的需求不断增长，尚未得到满足。我们建议创建Nuair，这是一种为患者定制的具有完美支架的所有特征的呼吸道支架。它将使用生物兼容的胶原蛋白和合成聚合物来满足气管的生理需求。设计灵感来自于自然界中的结构建筑。这将导致支架使用最少的材料，具有很强的柔韧性。Nuair将通过3D打印进行制作，这是一种快速且经济实惠的方法。最重要的是，这将允许根据个别患者的计算机断层扫描(CT)定制支架。这将减少意外移动并增加舒适性--这是理想支架的关键组成部分。