Louis-Philippe Lefebvre

Human alveolar bone cell proliferation, expression of osteoblastic phenotype, and matrix mineralization on porous titanium produced by powder metallurgy

OBJECTIVE This study aimed at investigating the influence of the porous titanium (Ti) structure on the osteogenic cell behaviour. MATERIALS AND METHODS Porous Ti discs were fabricated by the powder metallurgy process with the pore size typically between 50 and 400 microm and a porosity of 60%. Osteogenic cells obtained from human alveolar bone were cultured until subconfluence and subcultured on dense Ti (control) and porous Ti for periods of up to 17 days. RESULTS Cultures grown on porous Ti exhibited increased cell proliferation and total protein content, and lower levels of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity than on dense Ti. In general, gene expression of osteoblastic markers-runt-related transcription factor 2, collagen type I, alkaline phosphatase, bone morphogenetic protein-7, and osteocalcin was lower at day 7 and higher at day 17 in cultures grown on porous Ti compared with dense Ti, a finding consistent with the enhanced growth rate for such cultures. The amount of mineralized matrix was greater on porous Ti compared with the dense one. CONCLUSION These results indicate that the porous Ti is an appropriate substrate for osteogenic cell adhesion, proliferation, and production of a mineralized matrix. Because of the three-dimensional environment it provides, porous Ti should be considered an advantageous substrate for promoting desirable implant surface-bone interactions.

Initial evaluation of bone ingrowth into a novel porous titanium coating

Porous metals (sintered beads and meshes) have been used for many years for different orthopedic applications. Metal foams have been recently developed. These foams have the advantage of being more porous than the traditional coatings. Their high porosity provides more space for bone ingrowth and mechanical interlocking and presents more surface for implant-bone contact. The objective of this study was to evaluate in vivo bone ingrowth into Ti implants covered with a novel Ti foam coating. This foam contains 50% in volume of interconnected pores and a higher surface area compared to dense Ti. Both coated implants and dense Ti controls were placed transcortically in the rat tibia. The animals were sacrificed at 2 weeks after implantation, and the amount of bone in the implants was determined using backscattered electron imaging and X-ray microtomography. Already at this time interval, the pores within the Ti foam showed 97.7% bone filling, and the bone-implant contact area was significantly increased compared to dense Ti controls. These initial results indicate that this novel Ti foam is biocompatible, has the capacity to sustain bone formation, and can potentially improve osseointegration.

Effect of electrical resistivity on core losses in soft magnetic iron powder materials

Iron powder should be electrically insulated with a dielectric to reduce eddy current losses in components fabricated by powder metallurgy intended for AC soft magnetic applications. However, most of the dielectrics act as distributed air gaps and reduce the apparent permeability of the material. To obtain materials with good magnetic properties, the dielectric amount should then be kept as low as possible while maintaining low eddy current losses. This paper presents the influence of electrical resistivity on core losses in iron powder compacts at low frequency (f < 1 kHz). The results obtained show that a resistivity one order of magnitude higher than the resistivity of iron (~ 0.1 laf~ m) is sufficient to maintain low eddy current losses in powder cores at frequencies below 100 Hz.

Interstitial elements in titanium powder metallurgy: sources and control

Abstract The effect of interstitials on the mechanical properties of cast and wrought titanium alloys has been extensively reported but less information is available on the effect of contamination during PM processing. The sources of interstitial contamination when processing titanium powders by compaction, isostatic pressing, powder injection moulding (PIM) and innovative foaming processes are reviewed, focusing specifically on oxygen. The initial powder characteristics (surface area, size), process parameters (time, temperature) and environment (atmosphere, binder, support) may all have significant impact on the final interstitial content. It is, therefore, important to identify and control the sources of contamination by interstitials. A case study on PIM is provided to illustrate the relative contribution of the different sources.

Surface and Corrosion Electrochemical Characterization of Titanium Foams for Implant Applications

Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy has been revealed to be a useful tool to evaluate the exposed surface area and consequently to evaluate the corrosion behavior of titanium foams intended for biomedical applications.In order to find the most accurate corrosion assessment, a new equivalent circuit involving a porous model in series with a double TiO 2 layer model was proposed to fit the experimental data. Although seldom used in the literature, such technique could be useful for the characterization of porous media. Determining corrosion potentials and current densities, the titanium foams have revealed to be slightly more resistant to corrosion in simulated body fluid solutions at 37°C under static mode (no stress applied to the samples) compared to dense and polished titanium. The best titanium foams exibited penetration rates around 0.07 μm yr - 1 . Cyclic voltammetry experiments have shown that the titanium oxide layer stability was not affected by the fabrication process of the foams.

Production of Metallic Foams Having Open Porosity Using a Powder Metallurgy Approach

Abstract A technique has been recently developed to produce foamed metallic structures from dry powder blends containing a metallic powder, a polymeric binder, and a foaming agent. The blend is molded and heat-treated to foam and consolidate the material. The final properties may be tailored by varying the sintering temperature. Microstructure, chemical composition, and properties of nickel (Ni) foams sintered at different temperature are presented and discussed. The resulting material has an open cell microstructure with three levels of porosity. This structure leads to materials having low density (∼ 90% porosity) and high specific surface area. The specific surface area is reduced and the mechanical strength is increased when the sintering temperature increases.

The influence of pore size on osteoblast phenotype expression in cultures grown on porous titanium

This study investigated the effect of pore size on osteoblastic phenotype development in cultures grown on porous titanium (Ti). Porous Ti discs with three different pore sizes, 312 μm (Ti 312), 130 μm (Ti 130) and 62 μm (Ti 62) were fabricated using a powder metallurgy process. Osteoblastic cells obtained from human alveolar bone were cultured on porous Ti samples for periods of up to 14 days. Cell proliferation was affected by pore size at day 3 (p=0.0010), day 7 (p=0.0005) and day 10 (p=0.0090) in the following way: Ti 62<Ti 130<Ti 312. Gene expression of bone markers evaluated at 14 days was affected, RUNX2 (p=0.0153), ALP (p=0.0153), BSP (p=0.0156), COL (p=0.0156), and OPN (p=0.0156) by pore size as follows: Ti 312<Ti 130<Ti 62. Based on these results, the authors suggest that porous Ti surfaces with pore sizes near 62 μm, compared with those of 312 μm and 130 μm, yield the highest expression of osteoblast phenotype as indicated by the lower cell proliferation rate and higher gene expression of bone markers.

Insertion Profiles of 4 Headless Compression Screws

PURPOSE In practice, the surgeon must rely on screw position (insertion depth) and tactile feedback from the screwdriver (insertion torque) to gauge compression. In this study, we identified the relationship between interfragmentary compression and these 2 factors. METHODS The Acutrak Standard, Acutrak Mini, Synthes 3.0, and Herbert-Whipple implants were tested using a polyurethane foam scaphoid model. A specialized testing jig simultaneously measured compression force, insertion torque, and insertion depth at half-screw-turn intervals until failure occurred. RESULTS The peak compression occurs at an insertion depth of -3.1 mm, -2.8 mm, 0.9 mm, and 1.5 mm for the Acutrak Mini, Acutrak Standard, Herbert-Whipple, and Synthes screws respectively (insertion depth is positive when the screw is proud above the bone and negative when buried). The compression and insertion torque at a depth of -2 mm were found to be 113 ± 18 N and 0.348 ± 0.052 Nm for the Acutrak Standard, 104 ± 15 N and 0.175 ± 0.008 Nm for the Acutrak Mini, 78 ± 9 N and 0.245 ± 0.006 Nm for the Herbert-Whipple, and 67 ± 2N, 0.233 ± 0.010 Nm for the Synthes headless compression screws. CONCLUSIONS All 4 screws generated a sizable amount of compression (> 60 N) over a wide range of insertion depths. The compression at the commonly recommended insertion depth of -2 mm was not significantly different between screws; thus, implant selection should not be based on compression profile alone. Conically shaped screws (Acutrak) generated their peak compression when they were fully buried in the foam whereas the shanked screws (Synthes and Herbert-Whipple) reached peak compression before they were fully inserted. Because insertion torque correlated poorly with compression, surgeons should avoid using tactile judgment of torque as a proxy for compression. CLINICAL RELEVANCE Knowledge of the insertion profile may improve our understanding of the implants, provide a better basis for comparing screws, and enable the surgeon to optimize compression.

Foam-coated MIM gives new edge to titanium implants

Titaniums characteristics of lightness combined with strength and compatibility with human tissue makes it an ideal metal for medical implants. When manufactured in porous forms, bone integration is encouraged giving long-term stability. Researchers in Canada have been looking at dental implants that have a dense titanium core and a porous foam composite coat…