MEDICAL DEVICES BASED ON BIOINSPIRED CERAMICS - Advanced Biomaterials: Fundamentals, Processing, and Applications - page 396

Figure 11.28. Typical cross-section SEM micrograph of a sapelli based SiC ceramics implanted
for 12 weeks in rabbit femur. The porosity of the implant is colonized by the bone tissue with
high concentrations of Ca and P (see EDS spectra).
biomedical devices. The complete technological process, from the production of
the bio-derived silicon carbide and the bioactive coating deposition to in vitro
and in vivo biocompatibility studies, is presented.
Bio-derived silicon carbide ceramics, fabricated from cellulose templates, are
light, tough and high-strength materials that mimic the natural structure of the
bone. The physico-chemical properties of the bioactive coatings can be tuned to
provide the optimum reactivity in contact with the host tissues, improving the
fi xation and osteointegration.
This study demonstrates that this ceramic product, formed by the bioSiC and
the bioactive coating, presents a good biological response, being similar to tita-
nium controls but additionally, it incorporates the unique property of intercon-
nected porosity, which is colonized by the bone tissue.
The versatility of the SiC fabrication process and the coating deposition
method opens the door to a whole new generation of metal-free implants for
biomedical applications. In particular, to solve problems of degenerative disc
diseases, bioinspired SiC is being investigated for the fabrication of intersomatic
vertebral cages for posterior fusion surgery of the lumbar column with the
purpose to immobilize spinal segments and in an attempt to obtain a higher fusion
rate, restore disc height and indirectly decompress neural structures.