Coatings and sealants specialist Actega (Bremen / Germany; www.actega.com/ds), part of specialty chemicals producer Altana (Wesel / Germany; www.altana.com), has introduced highly-transparent “ProvaMed” 1060 TPE for medical tubing applications.

The compound allows liquid or gaseous content in the tube to remain visible, enabling visual flow control, while tube systems in clinical applications can display radiopaque stripes in the tube wall to enable the position of the tube to be tracked in the body. It can be co-extruded in two or more materials to form layers within a tube.

An antimicrobial coating can be applied to the material to bring increased bacterial resistance. Other factors considered in the development of the material included material bio-compatibility, depending on where it is used in the body, the physiological contact medium during application of the product, the period of use and the sterilisation process, especially in the case of tube systems in contact with blood, and buckling resistance to guarantee the free flow of substances through tubes.

Actega will present its “ProvaMed” portfolio at MEDTEC Europe (www.medteceurope.com), held in Stuttgart / Germany from 26 to 28 February 2013.