Amino polysaccharide quaternary ammonium salt grafted to PET‐Cuff by ultraviolet irradiation for improving the sustained antibacterial property of semi‐permanent central vein tunneled cuffed catheter

Abstract In hemodialysis, tunneled cuffed catheter (TCC) is commonly used as a medical device for establishing vascular access. To address the current problem that the skin tunnel of TCC is susceptible to bacterial infection, this work proposes quaternized modification of the cuff of TCC to comprehensively enhance the long‐lasting antimicrobial performance of TCC. The morphology of the cuff basically resembles the polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Via ultraviolet (UV) irradiation, acrylic acid (AA) was grafted onto PET. Then, amino polysaccharide quaternary ammonium salt (As) replaced H + of the carboxyl groups on the macromolecular chain of PET through solution post‐treatment method. Through the single factor experiment, the degree of grafting reached 159.8% under the optimum preparation conditions (AA concentration of 25 vol%, H + concentration of 0.2 mol/L, photosensitizer capacity of 15 wt%, and photo‐irradiation time of 30 min). By the above method, we successfully synthesized a highly hydrophilic, well biocompatible, and highly efficient antimicrobial PET‐g‐PAA@As. Animal experiments and histological analyses showed that PET‐g‐PAA@As was superior to PET control and blank control groups in controlling infection and promoting wound healing. This catheter material with excellent biocompatibility, sustained antimicrobial activity, and wound healing ability will have great potential for use in hemodialysis.