Handbook of Biodegradable Polymers

A source manual for synthetic procedures, properties and applications of bioerodible polymers, this resource provides descriptions of widely available materials such as polyactides, collagen and gelatin, as well as polymers of emerging importance which are as yet either proprietary and/or in early stages of development.
A source manual for the synthetic procedures, properties and application of bioerodible polymers, this work describes widely-available materials such as polylactides, collagen, and gelatin. Polymers of emerging importance such the genetically engineered and elastin based polymers are also discussed. Divided into three sections, each chapter focuses on one type of polymer, providing a concise and comprehensive review on the synthetic methods, properties, biodegradation, biocompatibilty and applications. The first section deals with synthetic absorbable polymers; section two addresses natural, semi-synthetic and biosynthetic polymers; and the final section covers the surface characterization of degradable polymers, modelling of biodegradation and nonmedical polymers.