A plastic derived from cornstarch combined with a volcanic ash compound, Montmorillonite clay, could help heal the bones of hundreds of thousands of patients with orthopedic injuries who need bone replacement after tumor removal, spinal fusion surgery or fracture repair.
Researchers at Beaumont Hospital – Royal Oak will publish their preclinical findings in the journal Nanomedicine. Kevin Baker, Ph.D., director, Beaumont Orthopaedic Research Laboratories, worked on the study with Rangaramanujam Kannan, Ph.D., of Johns Hopkins, formerly with Wayne State University.Traditional bone graft procedures require surgeons to remove bone from another part of the patient’s body to heal the affected area and encourage new bone growth. Harvesting a patient’s bone can result in complications at the harvest site. Some surgeons also use bone donated from cadavers. However, there is a limited supply of donor bones available.
Using a synthetic material will likely lead to a reduction in the surgery complication rate. The patient will only need to heal from one surgery because harvesting bone would not be necessary.
The goal is to use the material without any additional permanent hardware placed in a patient’s body. Current procedures often require a metal or non-resorbable plastic implant because traditional bone grafts are not strong enough without the added support.
“This improves outcomes for the patient because internal hardware can pose a challenge with respect to being a potential site for infection, and can complicate MRI and CT imaging tests. In addition, from the surgeon’s perspective, not having to worry about a large piece of metal or hard plastic in the area may make future procedures easier,” Baker says.
The biodegradable polymer, reinforced with Montmorillonite clay nanoparticles for strength, dissolves in the body within 18 months. As the material dissolves, new bone formation takes its place. The material is created by injecting the polymer-clay mixture with carbon dioxide, resulting in an implant that looks like foam, but is rigid like bone. Researchers designed the bone material to be porous, just like actual human bone.
The material is still in the research phase and likely won’t be available to patients for several years.
Read more: Biodegradable implant could help heal broken bones
The Latest on: Biodegradable implant
[google_news title=”” keyword=”Biodegradable implant” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Biodegradable implant
- Cutaneous and Systemic Hypersensitivity Reactions to Metallic Implantson May 5, 2024 at 5:00 pm
A non-exhaustive summary of reported cases of cutaneous reactions caused by a metallic implant is given in Table 5. Although many of the patients were patch test positive to their implanted metals ...
- Is There a Best Knee Replacement Implant? What to Know When Choosingon May 1, 2024 at 5:00 pm
Today, there’s no shortage of manufacturers producing prosthetic devices for knee replacements. It’s important to choose the best device for you and your situation. Share on Pinterest Denis ...
- I was left looking like a monster after I had dental implants - my face became swollen and bruised all overon April 19, 2024 at 3:04 am
A mother has claimed dental implants left her face with the 'worst bruising ever' - leaving her looking like a human 'Rorschach inkblot test'. Jessica Macko, from San Antonio, Texas, had been ...
- Dental Implants Can Have a Huge Impacton April 19, 2024 at 1:57 am
He wasn’t shocked when the neighbor told him that he had received a smile makeover including dental implants. However, he was pleasantly surprised to hear that it was a local dentist that did ...
- Cochlear Implant Surgery: Costs, Benefits And Riskson April 17, 2024 at 2:47 am
Cochlear implants don’t restore a person’s hearing. However, these powerful tools can help those with severe or profound hearing loss hear and process sounds better so they can stay engaged in ...
- Why Elon Musk's Neuralink brain implant reframes our ideas of self-identityon April 16, 2024 at 5:01 pm
After living with paralysis for eight years, he had gained the ability to perform tasks previously inaccessible to him, thanks to a brain implant designed by Neuralink, a company founded by Elon Musk.
- 3D-printed PEEK-based Cranial Implants Cleared by FDAon April 15, 2024 at 5:00 pm
3D Systems has received 510(k) clearance from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its 3D-printed, patient-specific cranial implant system. The VSP PEEK Cranial Implant includes a complete ...
- The Next Frontier for Brain Implants Is Artificial Visionon April 14, 2024 at 10:00 pm
With the implant, he can perceive people and objects represented in white and iridescent dots. Bussard is one of a small number of blind individuals around the world who have risked brain surgery ...
- Exclusive: Synchron, a rival to Musk’s Neuralink, readies large-scale brain implant trialon April 8, 2024 at 8:48 am
WASHINGTON, April 8 (Reuters) - Synchron Inc, a rival to Elon Musk's Neuralink brain implant startup, is preparing to recruit patients for a large-scale clinical trial required to seek commercial ...
- Neural implants face ethical hurdles, study findson April 6, 2024 at 5:00 pm
In a recent article published in the journal Scientific Reports, researchers conducted multiple focus group sessions with developers of artificial intelligence (AI)-driven neural implants.
via Bing News