Most polymers used in clinical applications today are materials that have been developed
originally for application areas other than biomedicine. On the other side, different biomedical
applications are demanding different combinations of material properties and functionalities.
Compared to the intrinsic material properties, a functionality is not given by nature but result from
the combination of the polymer architecture and a suitable process. Examples for functionalities that
play a prominent role in the development of multifunctional polymers for medical applications are
biofunctionality (e.g. cell or tissue specificity), degradability, or shape-memory functionality. In this
sense, an important aim for developing multifunctional polymers is tailoring of biomaterials for
specific biomedical applications. Here the traditional approach, which is designing a single new
homo- or copolymer, reaches its limits. The strategy, that is applied here, is the development of
polymer systems whose macroscopic properties can be tailored over a wide range by variation of
molecular parameters.
The Shape-memory capability of a material is its ability to trigger a predefined shape change by
exposure to an external stimulus. A change in shape initiated by heat is called thermally-induced
shape-memory effect. Thermally, light-, and magnetically induced shape-memory polymers will be
presented, that were developed especially for minimally invasive surgery and other biomedical
applications. Furthermore triple-shape polymers will be introduced, that have the capability to
perform two subsequent shape changes. Thus enabling more complex movements of a polymeric
material.
Shape-Memory Polymers for Biomedical Applications
