| Abstract: | Polymers such as polyethylene, polytetrafluorethylene and polypropylene may be copolymerized with acrylic acid by radiation initiation to produce copolymers which are cationic hydrogels and thus possess physical properties different to the base polymers from which they are derived. The present preliminary study was undertaken to determine whether this class of material may have potential application for use within the urinary tract. Inserts of such copolymers in sheet form (5 mm. square) and their corresponding base polymers were placed in the bladders of male Wistar rats as free floating grafts and left in situ for 3 months. Stone formation and/or encrustation occurred on 12 of the 16 radiation graft copolymers and on 9 of 11 of the corresponding base polymers. The altered physical properties of the tested acrylic acid graft copolymers appear to offer no additional resistance to encrustation although their plasticity and ability to swell in water may provide some advantages over more conventional polymeric materials. |
