Resumen de Porous titanium for biomedical applications: an experimental study on rabbits
Luana Marotta Reis de Vasconcellos, Daniel de Oliveira Leite, Fernanda Oliveira Nascimento, Luis Gustavo Oliveira de Vasconcellos, Mário Lima de Alencastro Graca, Yasmin Rodarte Carvalho, Carlos Alberto Alves Cairo
Objective: The aim of this study was to carry out an in vivo assessment of bone ingrowth in two different types of porous titanium -the first being completely porous, and the second with a porous surface and dense nucleus, manufactured by powder metallurgy- and to evaluate their mechanical properties. Study design: Ten scaffolds from each group were submitted to metallographic analysis and compression tests. Next, two scaffolds of each type were inserted into 14 rabbits, which were sacrificed 8 weeks after surgery. The samples were submitted for histological examination. Results: Metallographic analysis revealed interconnected pores, and the average interconnected pore diameter was about 360 mm, with 36% total porosity. The totally porous titanium samples and the titanium samples with porous surface and dense nucleus showed an average compressive strength of 16.19 MPa and 69.27 MPa, respectively. After 8 weeks, the animals showed bone ingrowth, even into the most internal pores.
Conclusions: The pore morphology was effective in permitting bone ingrowth in both groups. Titanium scaffolds with a porous surface and dense nucleus showed the best mechanical properties and most adequate interface.
