Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) Artificial Pericardium Fabricated via Electrospinning and Thermo-Expansion: Evaluation of Local Tissue Response After Implantation

Electrospun polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE)-based artificial pericardium represents a promising material for use in cardiovascular surgery, particularly in cases requiring repeated cardiac interventions. A key factor determining its clinical applicability is its structure. This study presents a comparative evaluation of an artificial pericardium made from polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) via electrospinning against a commercial analogue from Gore® (PRECLUDE®). Two morphologies were investigated: fibrous (porosity ~59 ± 2%, fiber diameter 1.25 ± 0.25 µm) and spherical (porosity 34 ± 3%, particle size 3.90 ± 0.75 µm). The commercial sample exhibited a characteristic node-fibril structure with a porosity of 45 ± 3%. The Gore® material was the strongest sample (23.4 ± 2.3 MPa), whereas the electrospun samples demonstrated significantly higher relative elongation (170 ± 20% and 370 ± 10% for the spherical and fibrous samples, respectively, versus 70 ± 20% for the control). In vitro investigation on mice dermal fibroblast culture revealed no cytotoxicity and demonstrated good cell adhesion and proliferation on all investigated materials. Histological analysis after implantation into the rat greater omentum showed that the sample with a spherical structure elicited the least inflammatory response and formed the thinnest fibrous capsule compared to both the fibrous sample and the commercial Gore® material. The results indicate that the electrospinning enables the creation of biocompatible materials for cardiovascular surgery, with the spherical surface morphology being the most promising due to its ability to minimize the inflammatory response in vivo.