The goal of this exploratory research is to develop a method to control the degradation properties of implanted materials. The approach is to deposit negative charges on the implant material using low-temperature gas plasma technology. The negative surface charges are expected to repel the negative OH ions involved in hydrolytic degradation mechanisms. The work will test the hypothesis that the degradation rate of surface-treated synthetic absorbable polymers will be reduced when compared with those of untreated materials. The degradation rate will be determined using several quantitative techniques. If successful, this research will open up a new way of designing implant materials for specific degradation rates. Moreover, the possibility also exists that the degradation rate may be controllable externally.
