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Posted on • Originally published at poliinternational.com

Medical Elastomers and the Chemistry Divide: Why BioFlex® and TPU Are Not Interchangeable

BioFlex® is a polypropylene random copolymer (PP-R), not TPU; online sources misidentify it routinely, but the chemistry difference affects sterilisation compatibility, migration risk, and tissue response in fresh piercings.

What the full article covers

  • BioFlex® and Bioplast are polypropylene random copolymers (PP-R) certified to ISO 10993-6 and FDA Class IV, fundamentally different from thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) elastomers used by competitors.

  • Online sources routinely misidentify BioFlex® as TPU; this factual error obscures real differences in biocompatibility, sterilisation compatibility, and migration risk.

  • PP-R and TPU have divergent migration profiles, sterilisation thresholds, and softening temperatures, using them as equivalent alternatives creates compliance and safety liability.

  • Silicone medical grades and TPU formulations remain valid choices for specific anatomies, but they require separate material qualification and practitioner awareness of the chemical distinction.

  • Studio procurement decisions must reference actual chemistry, not brand convenience or marketing grouping, BioFlex® PP-R, Bioplast PP-R, Kaos Softwear TPU, and silicone medical grades are not interchangeable.

Read the full engineering article on Poli International →
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First published on poliinternational.com. This is a summary of the original engineering article.

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