Functional closure of visceral pleural defects by autologous tissue engineered cell sheets.

Abstract

The occurrence of intraoperative air leaks is an unavoidable complication during pulmonary surgeries. However, current surgical methods are generally ineffective in closing these visceral pleural defects, resulting in a decreased quality of life for patients. Here, we examined novel tissue engineered cell sheets for the closure of pleural defects in a porcine model.