Abstract
During the past decade, important advances have been accomplished in the understanding of the hydrolytic degradation characteristics of aliphatic polyesters derived from lactic acids (LA) and glycolic acid (GA). Degradation of large-size PLAGA polymers is autocatalyzed by carboxyl endgroups initially present or generated upon ester bond cleavage. Faster internal degradation and degradation-induced morphological and compositional changes are three of the most important findings deduced from the behaviors of various PLAGA polymers. This review is aimed at presenting the state-of-the-art in this domain. Efforts are focused on detailing the degradation mechanism and the effects of various factors on the degradation of PLAGA polymers. Attempt is also made to elaborate a scheme which can be used to predict degradation characteristics of these polymers from their initial composition and morphology.