Competency information
Details
Explore material choice in relation to different types of tissue to be replaced, either bone (hard), or muscle or skin (soft).
Considerations
- Repair of defects using the patient’s own skin and bone, autogenous reconstruction.
- The advantages and disadvantages of both autogenous (own skin) or alloplastic (non human) materials.
Deep-Buried Implants
- Physiological and immunological responses to alloplastic implants.
- Cellular response to implants, systemic effects of implants.
- Blood compatibility, non-thrombogenic surfaces.
- Testing of carcinogenicity, risk assessment.
Metallic Implant Materials
- Titanium and titanium-based alloys.
- Types and composition.
- Structure and properties.
- Implant manufacture with titanium and titanium-based alloys.
Ceramic Implant Materials
- Calcium phosphate, structure, properties of hydroxyapatite.
- Manufacturing of hydroxyapatite.
Polymeric Implant Materials
- Polymeric implant materials, rubbers.
- Deterioration of polymers, chemical effects, sterilisation effects, mechano-chemical effects, in vivo environmental effects, stability and toxicity.
Failure of Materials
- Behaviour of materials when stressed.
- Different ways in which materials can fail (wear, fatigue, degradation by corrosion).
- Corrosion of metallic implants.
- Electrochemical aspects.
- Pourbaix diagrams in corrosion.
- Rates of corrosion and polarisation curves.
- Corrosion of available metals.
- Minimisation of corrosion.
- Relationship of failure to the macro and microstructure of a material.
- Role of defects in metals and the effect on an appliance.
Soft Tissue Replacement
- Percutaneous devices.
- Maxillofacial implants.
- Ear and eye implants.
- Space-filling implants.
New Developments in Biomedical Materials and Manufacturing
- Surface coatings of implant materials, e.g. plasma coatings, hydroxyapetite coatings.
- Physical and vapour deposition of thin films.
- Evaluation of chemical and mechanical properties of new materials and their application.
- Principles of tissue engineering and stem cell research and its application to hard and soft tissue reconstruction.
- 3D printing of substrate structures, materials for scaffolds
- Hard tissue growth, soft tissue growth.
- Comparisons with alloplastic materials and manufacture.
- 3D printing of metallic implants, laser sintering.
Relevant learning outcomes
# | Outcome |
---|---|
# 10 | Outcome Manufacture medical implants for patients requiring surgical repair. |