Porous Hydroxyapatite for Artificial Bone Applications

Iis Sopyan
Department of Manufacturing and Materials Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, International Islamic University Malaysia

Ramesh Singh
Dept. Mechanical Engineering, University Tenaga Nasional, Malaysia

Kamarul Ariffin Khalid
Faculty of Medicine, International Islamic University Malaysia

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     Last modified: March 21, 2006

Abstract
Hydroxyapatite (HA) has been used clinically for many years. It has good biocompatibility in bone contact as its chemical composition is similar to that of bone material. Porous HA is more osteoconductive and resorbable than dense HA, because it has a high surface area which allows bone ingrowth. Porous HA can be produced by a number of methods including polymeric sponge method, gel casting of foams, starch consolidation, microwave processing, slip casting, cold isostatic pressing, and electrophoretic deposition technique. Some of these methods have been combined to fabricate porous hydroxyapatite with improved properties. One such example is the gel-sponge method which is the combination of gel-casting and polymer sponge methods. Other techniques are the combination of foaming and starch consolidation methods, and foaming combined with hydrothermal treatment. These combination methods have yielded some promising results. The applications of porous hydroxyapatite in the biomedical field are enormous. It has been used in bone tissue engineering, as filling material for bone defects and augmentation, artificial bone graft material, prosthesis revision surgery, cell loading, and drug delivery systems. This paper discusses the various techniques used to prepare porous hydroxyapatite as well as our recent progress in preparation of porous hydroxyapatite.