CALCIUM PHOSPHATE CERAMICS IMPLANTS

June 8, 2022

Calcium phosphate ceramics, the Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) noted in a press release, are in principle an ideal alternative to conventional metals because bone can eventually replace the ceramic and regrow.

About:

  • When people need a bone replacement following a fracture, it is often based on a metal part. But metal parts are sometimes toxic over time, and will not help the original bone regrow.
  • Calcium phosphate ceramics are substitutes for the bone mineral hydroxyapatite. However, applications of such ceramics in medical settings have been limited, because there is insufficient control over the rate of absorption and replacement by bone after implantation.
  • Now, in a study recently published in Science and Technology of Advanced Materials, researchers from TMDU and collaborators have studied the transformation of a ceramic into the bone mineral.
  • This work will help move bone regeneration research from laboratories to medical use.
  • The releases said the results of this study are important for healing bone fractures after surgery. By using chemical insights to optimise the rate of bone reformation after implantation of calcium phosphate ceramics, patient outcomes will improve, and returns to the hospital years later for further repairs will be minimised.