Novel additively manufactured tubular scaffold combined with electrospun biomolecules-embedded nanofibers promotes healing of ruptured tendon

Despite the progress made in modern medical technology, the therapy of ruptured tendons continues to be a challenging task. We designed an amalgamated scaffold consisting of an additively manufactured polycaprolactone (PCL) tubular stent and electrospun collagen/drug-embedded poly-D-L-lactide-glycolide (PLGA) nanofibrous mats for the treatment of Achilles tendon rupture. The in vitro drug elution characteristics of pharmaceuticals from electrospun nanofibers was estimated. The in vivo efficacies of PCL stent/biomolecules-biomolecule-eluting nanofibers for the therapy of treatment of tendon rupture were also evaluated on in a rabbit model with histological examinations. The experimental results showed that the PCL stents with diamond pores exhibited the best mechanical properties. Drug-loaded PLGA nanofibers provided sustained discharges of vancomycin and ceftazidime for 40 days and lidocaine for over 10 days in vitro. The in vivo outcomes suggested that the repaired tendon strengths in the no-stent group and stent-only group (without drugs) showed poorer strength than the control (normal tendons with no surgery). Furthermore, the stent/drug group exhibited a higher recovery rate than the stent-only group. The integration of the additively manufactured PCL tubular stent and electrospun drug-eluting PLGA nanofibrous membranes can effectively enhance tendon treatment in a rabbit model.