Bioresorbable Composites for Bone Reconstruction

Abstract

More than one million surgical procedures are done annually worldwide to restore bone functions lost as a result of fractures or deformities. Various implants are available for bone reconstruction: however, choosing the material is still challenging. Use of allografts is limited because of the immune barrier and a deficiency of reconstruction material; implants based on metals or alloys have a higher elastic modulus compared with bones and require repeated surgery; and polymeric implants, although bioresorbable, have relatively poor mechanical properties. Intense studies are therefore carried out to develop composites based on resorbable polymers with filler components that vary in type, nature, and properties. This review considers the resorbable composites that are available for bone reconstruction. Based on the filler component, composites are classified into fiber-reinforced, dispersed particle-reinforced, and structural composites. The main advantages of dispersed filler components based on calcium phosphate are that they are simple to process, bioactive, biocompatible, and osteoconductive. A broad range of mechanical and biological properties and similarity in properties and structure to natural bones are the advantages of phosphate glass fiber-reinforced composites, resorbable polymers, and structural composites. Bioresorbable composite implants that are similar in their mechanical properties to bone tissue, persist until fracture consolidation is complete, and have an osteogenic potential, will possibly replace conventional metallic devices in the nearest future.