Calcium Orthophosphates as Bioceramics - Calcium Orthophosphates: Applications in Nature, Biology and Medicine - page 331

In this chapter, the focus has been placed upon applications of
calcium orthophosphate bioceramics as medical implants to repair
and reconstruct the damaged or diseased hard tissues (usually,
those of the musculo-skeletal system, such as bones or teeth) of the
body and to describe some of the major developments in this field
during the past ~40 years. To narrow the subject further, with a
few important exceptions, bioceramics prepared from undoped and
un-substituted calcium orthophosphates have been considered and
discussed only. Furthermore, calcium orthophosphate bioceramics
prepared from the biological resources, such as bones, teeth, corals,
etc., is not considered either. The readers interested in these topics
are advised to read the original papers [8-38].

4.2 General Knowledge on Biomaterials and

Bioceramics

A number of definitions have been developed for the term
“biomaterials.” Until recently, the consensus developed by the
experts in this field has been the following: biomaterials are defined
as synthetic or natural materials to be used to replace parts of a living
system or to function in intimate contact with living tissues [39].
However, in September 2009, a more advanced definition has been
introduced: “A biomaterial is a substance that has been engineered
to take a form which, alone or as part of a complex system, is used to
direct, by control of interactions with components of living systems,
the course of any therapeutic or diagnostic procedure, in human or
veterinary medicine” [40]. These alterations in the definitions are
accompanied by a shift in conceptual ideas on biomaterials and
the expectations of their biological performance, which both have
changed in time [41].
The biomaterials discipline is founded in the knowledge of
the synergistic interaction of material science, biology, chemistry,
medicine and mechanical science and requires the input of
comprehension from all these areas so that implanted biomaterials
perform adequately in a living body and interrupt normal body
functions as little as possible [42]. As biomaterials mainly deal with
all aspects of material synthesis and processing, the knowledge
in chemistry, material science and engineering is essential. On
the other hand, as clinical applications are the main purposes