Hydrogel-based vascular grafts: State of art

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the primary reason of mortality globally, and it is predicted to remain so for the foreseeable future. Researchers are actively working to develop tissue-engineered vessel grafts (TEVGs) to overcome the current challenges experienced with autologous vessels, which are primarily preferred for bypass treatment. Commercialized vascular grafts are effective in the clinic; nevertheless, when the diameters are less than 6 mm, thrombose, blood vessel blockage, hyperplasia, and infection cause a considerable failure rate. Although there is a huge effort by researchers to design scaffolds with desired functions, it is still a challenge to produce the ideal vascular graft by searching for new materials and technologies to overcome the current limitations. Because not only their morphological and chemical structures but also the high water content of the hydrogels and the extracellular matrix (ECM) are significantly similar, hydrogels have recently attracted significant attention as promising candidates for scaffolds to overcome challenges, support cell viability, and proliferation. In addition to these advantages, because of their hemocompatibility and antithrombogenicity, they are considered ideal candidates for vascular grafts. The goal of this review is to offer a complete and comparative overview of recent studies on hydrogel-based vascular grafts, focusing on material selection and fabrication processes. In addition to the basics of hydrogel types, properties, and production methods, the advantages of hydrogel-based vascular grafts and the limitations they cause are discussed in detail. It is expected that this content will shed light on researchers working on the improvement of vascular graft designs and provide a controversial perspective on hydrogel-based innovative solutions.