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This Special Session succeeds the successful focused session A-15 of CIMTEC 2012 whereby concentrates on biomedical applications. Smart polymeric materials, which have the ability to response to an external stimulus e.g. by moving actively, found their way into several application areas such as packaging, textiles, or aerospace. These materials are as an enabling technology of high scientific and technological significance especially for biomedical applications. In general two categories of such intelligent materials can be distinguished: shape-memory polymers and shape-changing polymers. The progress in material chemistry, characterization techniques, computer-aided modeling, as well as in the understanding of biomaterial tissue interaction enables scientists today to develop active polymer systems in a knowledge based approach. Fundamental research is directed to the application of other stimuli different from heat (e.g. electric current, humidity, light, or alternating magnetic fields), to enable more complex movements on demand, to memorize even other macroscopic properties different from shape, or to realize the effect in polymer systems whose structural characteristics match those of tissue. A strategy aiming at soft smart materials is the creation of swollen polymer systems. On the other hand the creation of composites can be used to strengthen soft materials or to integrate additional functionalities resulting in multifunctionality, which is necessary to fulfill the challenging and complex demands of biomedical products based on smart polymers. A longterm goal is the integration of the different functionalities on the molecular level. The combined expertise of chemists, physicists, biologists, pharmacologists, and materials engineers in interdisciplinary approaches is required to encounter the challenges of innovative material concepts, which will be presented, discussed, and published to foster the scientific exchange of this growing community. Session Topics FO-8.1 - Shape-memory polymers for biomedical applications FO-8.2 - Shape-changing polymers for biomedical applications FO-8.3 - Light-sensitive polymers for biomedical applications FO-8.4 - Smart composites for biomedical applications FO-8.5 - Biomedical applications based on degradable, stimuli-sensitive polymers FO-8.6 - Multi-material systems for biomedical applications FO-8.7 - Smart, swollen systems for biomedical applications FO-8.8 - Smart polymers in polymersomes and vesicles for biomedical applications FO-8.9 - Smart polymers in biomedical applications |