Abstract
Silica-based ceramics have been proposed for coating purposes to enhance dental and orthopedic titanium (Ti) implant bioactivity. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of sphene-based bioceramic (CaO.TiO2.SiO2) coatings on implant osseointegration in vivo. Sphene coatings were obtained from preceramic polymers and nano-sized active precursors and deposited by an automatic airbrush. Twenty customized Ti implants, ten sphene-coated and ten uncoated rough implants were implanted into the proximal femurs of ten Sprague-Dawley rats. Overall, cortical and cancellous bone-to-implant contact (BIC) were determined using micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) at 14 and 28 days. Moreover, peri-implant bone healing was histologically and histomorphometrically evaluated. The white blood cell count in the synovial fluid of the knee joints, if present, was also assessed. No difference in the BIC values was observed between the sphene-coated and uncoated implants, overall and in the two bone compartments (p > 0.05). Delamination of the coating occurred in three cases. Consistently with micro-CT data, the histological evaluation revealed no differences between the two groups. In addition, no synovial fluid could be collected on the test side, thus confirming sphene biocompatibility. In conclusion, sphene coating was found to be a suitable material for biomedical applications. Further studies are needed to improve coating adhesion to the implants.
Highlights
Osseointegration, which is defined as the close contact between the implant and the surrounding living bone, is a fundamental condition for long-term implant success [1]
Uncoated implants presented Sa and Sz values of 2.55 μm and 50.74 μm respectively, whereas higher values were found for the sphene-coated surfaces (Sa = 3.38 μm and Sz = 59.06 μm)
We found a high level in the intracellular compartment and no detectable value in the extracellular environment
Summary
Osseointegration, which is defined as the close contact between the implant and the surrounding living bone, is a fundamental condition for long-term implant success [1]. Micro- and nano-roughening of Ti machined implants have been demonstrated to enhance the implant osseointegration. To that aim, both additive techniques, consisting in coating deposition procedures, as well as subtractive treatments (e.g., grit-blasting, sandblasting acid-etching, electropolishing, mechanical polishing, and laser micro-texturing) have been introduced [4,5]. Bioactive coatings appear to be a promising strategy to enhance implant osseointegration [6,7]. Even though one of the main drawbacks of coatings consists of their chemical stability, bioactive coatings have been shown to mimic the biochemical milieu and architecture of bone tissue to a greater extent than uncoated Ti surfaces [5]
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