Surmodics’ low-friction coatings are reported to further enhance distal access for neurovascular applications.

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn.—Surmodics, Inc. recently introduced what the company called its “most advanced hydrophilic medical device coating technology.”

The global provider of medical device coating technologies said in a release that its

Preside™ hydrophilic coatings complement its existing Serene hydrophilic coatings. They are reported to provide customers with a unique low-friction and low-particulate generation coating to further enhance distal access for neurovascular applications. The coatings are also said to improve crossing for challenging coronary lesions or chronic total occlusions.

According to Surmodics, Preside hydrophilic coatings are specifically formulated to meet the challenge of achieving the right balance of enhanced lubricity (reduction in friction) and excellent coating durability (resulting in low particulates) for the next-generation of neurovascular, coronary and peripheral vascular devices. The coatings are said to allow customers to leverage their existing coating processes, resulting in easy implementation in a manufacturing environment.

“Hydrophilic coatings are an essential feature to help medical devices access and navigate tortuous vascular pathways, allowing physicians to reach distal treatment sites for improved therapeutic outcomes,” said Surmodics Senior Vice President Charlie Olson, who is also president of Surmodics’ Medical Device Coatings business, in a statement.

Preside hydrophilic coatings are said to successfully bond to a wide variety of substrates present on today’s market-leading neurovascular, coronary, and peripheral catheters. They are applied using Surmodics’ patented Photolink™ UV curing process, which covalently bonds surface treatments to substrates at ambient temperature. This flexible technology can be  incorporated easily into existing manufacturing processes and can markedly reduce production time and reagent costs versus thermal-curing and alternative UV-based chemistries and processes, the company said.

“We are pleased to secure the first 510(k) device clearance that leverages this new technology,” Olson added. “Our Preside hydrophilic coatings strengthen our existing portfolio and set a new performance standard for the industry and the medical device manufacturers we serve.”

Surmodics provides performance coating technologies for intravascular medical devices and chemical and biological components for in-vitro diagnostic immunoassay tests and microarrays. The company said it also develops and commercializes highly differentiated, vascular intervention medical devices that are designed to address unmet clinical needs and engineered to the most demanding requirements.