Nanostructured apatites as orthopedic biomaterials

Historically, using suitable mechanical replacements for bone has been a priority in designing permanent, load-bearing orthopedic implants. As a result, the biomaterials used in these implants have been largely limited to bioinert titanium-based alloys, as well as to polycrystalline alumina and zirconia ceramics. However, analysis of implants incorporating these traditional biomaterials indicated that most failures involved an unstable implant-tissue interface and/or a mismatch of the mechanical behavior of the implant with the surrounding tissues. As a result, up to 20% of patients receiving permanent, load-bearing implants may undergo a revision operation. The objective of this research was to develop an alternative biomaterial that combined both mechanical resilience and an osteoconductive surface to provide a stable interface with the surrounding connective tissue so that the need for revision operations may be significantly reduced. In the effort to address the issue of mechanical strength and bioactivity simultaneously, hydroxyapatite (HAP) has generated considerable interest. Though a commonly used bioceramic, HAP has been limited by its processability. This material is sensitive to non-stoichiometry and impurities during synthesis and processing due to its complex composition and crystal structure (Ca10(P04)6(OH)2, P63/m).

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Chemical Engineering.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2001

Author dc:creator

• Ahn, Edward Sun, 1972-

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Jackie Y. Ying.

• Chemical Engineering.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/8627

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/8627