COMPOSITE MATERIALS FOR HARD TISSUE REPLACEMENT

由创伤、疾病或先天缺陷引起的骨缺损传统上是通过使用内源性骨、外源性骨或合成替代物(包括金属、陶瓷和聚合物)作为替代材料来修复的。虽然这些方法已经成功地使用了几十年，但它们都存在缺陷。在过去的几年里，许多研究致力于开发最终可降解以允许天然骨重新生长的骨替代品。这些努力导致了新生物材料的开发，并更好地了解了骨形成过程。根据这一新知识，TDA Research，Inc.(TDA)计划开发一种新的无机-有机复合材料，可用作修复大型和不规则骨缺损的骨替代品。TDA的复合骨替代物将在手术过程中用作糊状或油灰，并可在体内成形和加工。固化后的材料具有优异的力学性能，并在植入后变得多孔。孔隙率是获得骨传导性的关键。TDA的可生物降解骨替代品的降解产物将是无毒的。这种复合材料的设计将在降解过程中保持强度。建议的商业应用：TDA的骨替代物将用于硬组织置换的生物材料行业。目前，生物材料行业在骨替代材料上花费了23亿美元(Suchanek，1998年)。

Bone defects caused by trauma, disease or congenital deficiency have traditionally been restored with graft procedures using endogenous bone, exogenous bone, or synthetic substitutes, including metals, ceramics, and polymers, as replacement materials. Although these methods have been used successfully for decades, all of them present drawbacks. During the last few years much research has been devoted to the development of bone substitutes that eventually degrade to allow re-growth of the natural bone. These efforts have led to the development of new biomaterials and a better understanding of the bone-forming process. In light of this new knowledge, TDA Research, Inc. (TDA) plans to develop a new inorganic-organic composite that can be used as a bone substitute to repair large and irregular bony defects. TDA's composite bone substitute will be used as a paste or putty at the time of the surgical procedure and can be shaped and processed in vivo. The cured material will have excellent mechanical properties and become porous after implantation. Porosity is crucial for obtaining osteoconductivity. Degradation products from TDA's biodegradable bone substitute will be non-toxic. The composite will be designed to retain strength as the degradation proceeds. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS: TDA's bone substitute will be used in the biomaterial industry of hard tissue replacement. Currently the biomaterial industry spends $2.3 billion on bone replacement materials (Suchanek 1998).