In India, researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras have engineered a biomaterial implant from the sack of a buffalo’s heart that can be used for patients with cardiovascular disease. The natural material, called SynkroScaff, helps regenerate and integrates well with the human body. This is a big improvement compared to implants and surgical patches currently being used in India that are usually imported and made with synthetic materials often including toxic chemicals like glutaraldehyde or formaldehyde that cause complications in patients. So far, over 800 surgical patches have been made and used across three hospitals in India. Wondering what their success rate is so far in patients who have had the implants? Amazingly, 100%. Another big benefit of the new surgical patch is that unlike the others, patients don’t have to have a second operation to remove it later on.
