Recent trends in bio-materials and advances in design of spinal fusion implants

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ABSTRACT

Metals, ceramics and polymers are the three broad categories of bio-materials utilised in spinal fusion devices. A bio-material with good tensile strength, bio-compatible, minimal imaging artefacts, stiffness, young’s modulus near the bone and fatigue strength is suitable for a spinal fusion implant. Unfortunately, no material excels all desirable properties, such as high strength, similar elastic modulus to bone and excellent host tissue response. As a result, the materials used for such types of implants are identified by the unique criteria that are most significant and necessary for the implants specific applications. This may result in various components of a single implant being made of multi-materials to better fit its intended purpose. In fusion surgeries, implants and its fixation methods have advanced significantly to meet the demands of surgeons, who continue to increase their understanding of the bio-mechanical principles of spinal stability and help improve the production of novel implant design. The review focused on recent advancements and trends in the design of fusion devices and the use of bio-materials in their component assemblies. This review will help researchers to enhance and optimise the design and material properties for future spine implantology research.

KEYWORDS:

• Fusion implant
• spine implant
• cage
• rod
• pedicle screw
• plate

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).