Customized Vascularized Bone Implants
For the past five years, the Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering in Wurzburg, Germany has been coordinating research in several countries aimed at developing bone regeneration technology. A report earlier this year described the “VascuBone Toolbox”—“The toolbox is comprised of three major components. The first component is a novel, diamond-coated ceramic granulate material with large pores. This material can be readily used as it is easily absorbed in defects, is biocompatible and facilitates the growth of bone cells. The second major component is proteins acquired from the patient’s own blood to help promote bone tissue growth. The third component consists of cells from the patient’s blood or bone marrow that ensure that the implant is not rejected. Until now, surgeons have used either metal-based implants or tissue transplanted from a patient’s own pelvic bone.” MORE