Browse by author
Lookup NU author(s): Dr Raasti NaseemORCiD, Babis Tzivelekis, Dr Matthew GermanORCiD, Dr Piergiorgio GentileORCiD, Dr Ana Ferreira-DuarteORCiD, Professor Kenneth Dalgarno
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
Polyester based materials are an established option for the manufacture of bone fixation devices, with a range of devices in routine clinical use. This paper reviews the approaches researchers have taken to further developing the materials to improve either their mechanical or biological performance. Polymer blending and co-polymerisation, the use of particulate and fibre bio-ceramic materials to make composite materials, and surface modifications have all been studied, with polymer blending and co-polymerisation and particulate composites the approaches which have been adopted commercially, with the primary focus being on influencing the in vivo degradation rate. There are emerging opportunities in terms of novel polymer blends and nano-scale particulate systems in order to further tune bulk properties, and in terms of surface functionalisation to optimise the initial interaction of devices with the implanted environment, offering the potential to further improve the clinical performance of fracture fixation devices.
Author(s): Naseem R, Tzivelekis C, German MJ, Gentile P, Ferreira-Duarte A, Dalgarno K
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Molecules
Year: 2021
Volume: 26
Issue: 4
Online publication date: 13/02/2021
Acceptance date: 09/02/2021
Date deposited: 26/07/2021
ISSN (electronic): 1420-3049
Publisher: MDPI
URL: https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26040992
