Patent ID: 8003705

Claim:
A method for making a medical device, the method comprising: providing at least a first biocompatible precursor having least two electrophilic functional groups, and providing at least a second biocompatible precursor comprising at least two primary amine functional groups; wherein the first biocompatible precursor and the second biocompatible precursor are resistant to enzymatic degradation and at least one of the first biocompatible precursor or second biocompatible precursor comprises at least one isolated hydrolytically degradable ester group; and mixing at least the first biocompatible precursor and the second biocompatible precursor in situ to form a device comprising a crosslinked hydrogel that comprises covalent bonds formed by reaction of the functional groups of the first biocompatible precursor and second biocompatible precursor with each other and further comprising the at least one isolated hydrolytically degradable ester group; wherein the crosslinked hydrogel is resistant to enzymatic degradation, is degradable by hydrolysis of the at least one isolated hydrolytically degradable ester group so that the device is degradable in less than about 180 days, and wherein the second biocompatible precursor has a molecular weight of less than about 2000, wherein the second precursor is a member of the group consisting of ornithine, spermine, spermidine, urea, guanidine, dianmiopimelic acid, diaminobutyric acid, methylornithine, diaminopropionic acid, cystine, lanthionine, cystamine, trioxatridecanediamine, cyclohexanebis(methylamine), tetraethylenepentamine, pentaethylenehexamine, methylenebis(methylcyclohexamine), diaminocyclohexane, n-(2-aminoethyl)-1,3-propanediamine, diaminomethyldipropylamine, iminobispropylamine, bis(hexamethlyene)triamine, triethylenetetramine, bis(aminopropyl)ethylenediamine, bis(2-aminoethyl)-1,3-propanediamine, bis(aminopropyl)propanediamine, diamniomethylpropane, 1,2-diamino-2-methylpropane, 1,3-diaminopentane, dimethylpropanediamine, 2,2-dimethyl 1,3-propanediamine, methylpentanediamine, 2-methyl-1,5 pentanediamine, diaminoheptane, diaminooctane, diaminononane, and diaminododecane.