Polypropylene hernia mesh

Polypropylene mesh is a medical implant made of interwoven threads of polypropylene plastic. The mesh is designed for use in hernia surgeries.

Hernias are eruptions of internal tissue through weakened muscles that contain it. Surgeons can correct a hernia by making an incision near the site of the hernia and pushing the tissue back through the weakened muscle to where it belongs. Then, the surgeon can implant a hernia mesh device on the site of the hernia. This hernia mesh is designed to create scar tissue on the weakened muscle, which grows into the pores of the mesh, creating ingrowth. The scar tissue, together with the mesh implant, strengthens the weakened muscle enough to prevent another hernia in the same spot.

The vast majority of hernia mesh products are made of the plastic polypropylene. Polypropylene is an inexpensive and common type of plastic that is used in everything from chairs to containers. It is popular because it becomes rigid with far less pressure in the manufacturing process, reducing the cost of production.

However, polypropylene oxidizes, or erodes when it comes in contact with oxygen. This trait of polypropylene is at the heart of its problems when it is used as a hernia mesh implant.

2. The defects of polypropylene hernia mesh

When polypropylene is used in hernia mesh implants, those implants are prone to eroding over time. This erosion happens because the chemical nature of polypropylene makes it oxidize. When a polypropylene hernia mesh erodes, it deteriorates and fails, causing chronic pain and other medical problems. However, because hernia mesh products are designed to create scar tissue that grows into the mesh’s pores, removing the device is nearly impossible.

Medical device manufacturers have known about polypropylene’s tendency to erode inside the human body. In fact, when the chemical company Chevron Phillips learned that its polypropylene was being shaped into hernia mesh products and implanted in human beings by the company Boston Scientific, it