Vigilancia Tecnológica

This study presents an implantable reinforced cardiac patch (RCPatch) combining volumetrically 3D?printed metamaterials with melt?electrowritten (MEW) meshes. The design integrates tunable stiff polymer structures with soft, cell?laden hydrogels. The RCPatch withstands suturing, intraventricular pressure, and cardiac contraction in a large animal myocardial defect model. The patch prevents bleeding and enables partial hemodynamic restabilization, demonstrating its potential for myocardial repair.Cardiac patches to repair myocardial defects require mechanically stable materials that prevent bleeding and can be implanted via suturing. The current clinical standard, bovine pericardial patches (BPPs), serve this purpose but do not degrade or integrate with the myocardium, limiting their long?term effectiveness. Here, we present the reinforced cardiac tissue patch (RCPatch). This multimaterial patch comprises a stiffness?tuned, cardiomyocyte?infiltrated 3D metamaterial and a suturable, hydrogel?infiltrated mesh to reduce permeability and bleeding. Anisotropic metamaterials are designed and computationally optimized using a generative modeling approach and fabricated from poly(??caprolactone) (PCL) via volumetric 3D printing (VP). The metamaterial supports the infiltration of cardiomyocytes, which are viable and contract in vitro. The implantability and low blood permeability of the patch is enabled by adding a melt?electrowritten (MEW) mesh infiltrated with a fibrin hydrogel. In an acute large animal trial, the RCPatch was applied on an induced myocardial defect, where it withstood intraventricular blood pressure, prevented bleeding, and enabled hemodynamic restabilization (intraventricular pressure of 81 mmHg before, vs 66 mmHg after implantation). These findings establish a scalable framework for fabricating cardiac tissue patches that integrate mechanical reinforcement with biological function, offering a surgically implantable and future regenerative solution for intraventricular myocardial repair.