Cases
What’s the true essence of what DSM brings to this market? Our bright science is helping to improve peoples’ lives and preserve the planet - every day. Read on to find out how.
Eye treatment: A vision
Having needles stuck in your eyes is no fun.
But for sufferers of wet age-related macular degeneration, it’s reality. For these people the only treatment is a direct injection of medication into their eyeball - every six weeks.
But not for much longer. Our latest generation of polymer-based biomedical materials can deliver and hold medication in the body for far longer. What this means in practice is that patients will need invasive procedures far less often – and hopefully, never.
The patient’s view
John Coniff is a former Olympic weightlifter from the United States. In his quest for medals, John’s body suffered badly…until Dyneema Purity® came along.
“As a successful Olympic Weightlifter from 1980 to 2000, I earned countless titles, records and awards while my shoulders paid the price. Many athletes in the sport sustain injuries as the repetitive motion of weightlifting causes chronic rubbing of the rotator cuff on one of the shoulder bones. As a result my shoulder tendons experienced significant wear with one resulting in an actual rupture and the other in a partial tear.
My orthopedic surgeon used the suture with Dyneema Purity® fiber in the surgeries to reattach both rotator cuffs and I could not be more pleased with the results. Shortly after my surgeries, I was able to return to my full exercise regimen.”
How to mend a broken heart…
Already we’re moving from the age of bioactive to bio-interactive materials: In other words, regenerative medicine.
For example, DSM is helping battle cardiovascular disease by literally swapping a parachute for a scaffold.
In an incredibly intricate procedure, surgeons can boost cardiovascular regeneration by ‘parachuting’ single cells into the heart. The only problem is that it’s somewhat hit and miss - with a reportedly less than 5% chance of successful cell retention and integration.
To solve the problem DSM developed polymer ‘scaffolds’ that are designed to act as a platform for nurturing a fully functioning community of cells, which then can be inserted into the heart.
The result: We hope to help drastically increase the prospects of successfully kick-starting cell repopulation once inside the body. And perhaps helping to mend a broken heart…
