Characterization of polyesterurethane degradation products

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Abstract
Microthane foam, a poly(ester)urethane, used as a covering of some breast implants (Meme or Replicon by Surgitek) degrades readily in phosphate buffer pH 7.4 producing multiple unknown products in addition to 2,4 and 2,6 toluenediamine (TDA). The cumulative weight loss of the foam in buffer was 1.5% at 1 week and 2% at 2 weeks. Multiple peak molecular weights from 105 to 665 000 were found in the aqueous foam extracts following 2 weeks of incubation at 37°C using size exclusion chromatography (SEC). TDA was measured in the foam buffer extracts by high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) and confirmed by gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy (GC/MS). The total cumulative levels of 2,4 TDA and 2,6 TDA measured were 3 ± 0.65 μg/g of foam and 1.13 ± 0.19 μg/g of foam following 36 days of incubation at 37 °C. Higher amounts, 8.96 μg/g of 2,4 TDA and 3.3 μg/g of 2,6 TDA, were obtained at 50 °C. The cumulative release of TDA in aqueous extracts was found to correlate linearly with time suggesting a slow but continuous production of TDA under neutral conditions. However, less than 0.2 μg/g of TDA was detected as residual TDA in the methylene chloride extracts following up to 60 days at 37 °C. PU foam extracted with methylene chloride under similar conditions showed higher foam weight loss, 4.4 and 5% at 1 and 2 weeks, respectively. The results presented in this study provide further evidence that Microthane undergoes hydrolysis under neutral conditions in aqueous solutions producing TDA and other unknown low molecular weight components and oligomers. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.