Synthesis of Bioactive Augments for use in Revision Knee Joint Replacement

膝关节的损伤会限制患者的活动并导致严重的疼痛。在非手术治疗无效的情况下，通常采用全膝关节置换术。在2010-11年期间，估计在加拿大进行了超过53,000例膝关节置换手术，其中约6%是翻修手术。然而，用于替代受损组织的金属植入物会导致术后并发症，包括细菌感染、磨损和/或植入物松动。这就解释了开发颠覆性技术的迫切需要，这种技术不仅可以提供金属的结构支持，还可以促进愈合和抵抗感染。生物活性玻璃和陶瓷是候选材料，因为它们显示出与骨骼结合促进愈合和植入物稳定性的能力，并且可以配制成具有抗菌特性。拟议的合作健康研究项目将开发一种新型玻璃陶瓷材料，可首先用作膝关节翻修手术中的胫骨增强物。植入物将提供结构支持，并通过与患者自身骨骼融合和具有类似人骨的机械特性来促进愈合。植入物还可以通过在手术部位释放抗菌离子来防止感染。如果成功，这种创新材料也可以扩展到其他关节手术，包括髋关节和脊柱周围的手术。目前，加拿大公共和私人医疗保健支出总额接近1920亿美元，占国内生产总值的11.7%，这种颠覆性技术可以彻底改变手术方法，减少修改的需要，为医疗保健系统节省大量资金，提高加拿大人的生活质量；这一点至关重要，因为我们的人口老龄化预计会进一步推高医疗成本。

Damage to the knee can limit activities and cause severe pain in patients. In cases where nonsurgical treatments are nolonger helpful, total knee replacement is often utilized. In 2010-11 there were estimated to have been over 53,000 kneereplacement operations performed in Canada, around 6% of which were revision surgeries. However, the metal implantsused to replace the damaged tissue can lead to post-surgery complications including bacterial infection, wear and/orloosening of the implant. This explains the urgent need to develop disruptive technologies that can not only provide thestructural support of metal, but also promote healing and fight infection.Bioactive glasses and ceramics are candidate materials as they display the ability to bond to bone to promote healing andimplant stability, and can be formulated to have anti-bacterial properties. The proposed collaborative health research projectwill develop a novel glass-ceramic material that can be used, in the first instance, as a tibial augment in revision kneesurgery. The implant will offer structural support and promote healing by fusing with the patients own bone and by havingmechanical properties similar to human bone. The implant will also prevent infection by releasing anti-bacterial ions at thesite of surgery. If successful, this innovative material could also be extended to other joint surgeries including those aroundthe hip and spine.At a time when combined Canadian public and private spending on health care is almost $192B, amounting to 11.7% of totalgross domestic product, such a disruptive technology could revolutionize surgical approaches, reduce the need for revisions,promote considerable savings for the healthcare system and improve quality of life in Canada; crucial as our agingpopulation is expected to further propel health costs upward.