| Theme |
Recent evaluation and characteristics for dialysis membranes from biocompatible viewpoints |
| Title |
PEPA (polyester polymer alloy) |
| Author |
Narumi Tomisawa |
Department of Chemical Science and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience and Applied Chemistry, Hosei Univercity |
| Author |
Akihiro C. Yamashita |
Department of Chemical Science and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience and Applied Chemistry, Hosei Univercity |
| [ Summary ] |
Polyester polymer alloy (PEPA) membrane is a dialysis membrane made of two kinds of polymeric materials. Polymer alloys can form pores due to differences in ratio and cure extent of each polymer. There are two kinds of PEPA membrane ; one is original PEPA, and the other is hydrophilic PEPA, the one with polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) which is often used in polysulfone (PS) membranes and in the like. Comparing hydrophilic PEPA with PS membranes, less amount of PVP is used in PEPA. In patients who often cause anaphylactic shock associated with PVP, it has been reported that C3a concentration in blood correlated well with the amount of PVP no matter what the main materials are. |