eprintid: 10109382 rev_number: 14 eprint_status: archive userid: 608 dir: disk0/10/10/93/82 datestamp: 2020-09-08 09:59:50 lastmod: 2021-09-17 22:54:28 status_changed: 2020-09-08 09:59:50 type: article metadata_visibility: show creators_name: Meghdadi, A creators_name: Jones, SA creators_name: Patel, VA creators_name: Lewis, AL creators_name: Millar, TM creators_name: Carugo, D title: Foam-in-vein: A review of rheological properties and characterization methods for optimization of sclerosing foams ispublished: inpress divisions: UCL divisions: B02 divisions: C08 divisions: D10 divisions: G08 keywords: aqueous foams, foam sclerotherapy, sclerotherapy, vascular therapies note: © 2020 The Authors. Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part B: Applied Biomaterials published by Wiley Periodicals LLC. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract: Varicose veins are chronic venous defects that affect >20% of the population in developed countries. Among potential treatments, sclerotherapy is one of the most commonly used. It involves endovenous injection of a surfactant solution (or foam) in varicose veins, inducing damage to the endothelial layer and subsequent vessel sclerosis. Treatments have proven to be effective in the short-term, however recurrence is reported at rates of up to 64% 5-year post-treatment. Thus, once diagnosed with varicosities there is a high probability of a permanently reduced quality of life. Recently, foam sclerotherapy has become increasingly popular over its liquid counterpart, since foams can treat larger and longer varicosities more effectively, they can be imaged using ultrasound, and require lower amounts of sclerosing agent. In order to minimize recurrence rates however, an investigation of current treatment methods should lead to more effective and long-lasting effects. The literature is populated with studies aimed at characterizing the fundamental physics of aqueous foams; nevertheless, there is a significant need for appropriate product development platforms. Despite successfully capturing the microstructural evolution of aqueous foams, the complexity of current models renders them inadequate for pharmaceutical development. This review article will focus on the physics of foams and the attempts at optimizing them for sclerotherapy. This takes the form of a discussion of the most recent numerical and experimental models, as well as an overview of clinically relevant parameters. This holistic approach could contribute to better foam characterization methods that patients may eventually derive long term benefit from. date: 2020-07-04 date_type: published official_url: https://doi.org/10.1002/jbm.b.34681 oa_status: green full_text_type: pub language: eng primo: open primo_central: open_green verified: verified_manual elements_id: 1811467 doi: 10.1002/jbm.b.34681 lyricists_name: Carugo, Dario lyricists_id: DCARU23 actors_name: Carugo, Dario actors_id: DCARU23 actors_role: owner full_text_status: public publication: Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part B: Applied Biomaterials citation: Meghdadi, A; Jones, SA; Patel, VA; Lewis, AL; Millar, TM; Carugo, D; (2020) Foam-in-vein: A review of rheological properties and characterization methods for optimization of sclerosing foams. Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part B: Applied Biomaterials 10.1002/jbm.b.34681 <https://doi.org/10.1002/jbm.b.34681>. (In press). Green open access document_url: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10109382/1/jbm.b.34681.pdf