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Bioactive Glass Scaffold (small rectangular section)

Material ID: 321

Description

When you break a bone in your body, the bone is only able to repair itself effectively if all the original material is present and a good contact can be forged between the fragments. This small rectangular sample of bioactive glass scaffold is designed to help in situations when these conditions are not met. It sits between fragments of bone in place of missing material. However, the glass doesn’t replace the bone fragment permanently, it acts as a bridge for natural bone growth. As the bone grows it consumes the scaffold, eventually leading to a perfectly fused join. The scaffold is porous, so it contains an interconnected network of pores so that cells, blood vessels and new bone can penetrate into the material.

Materially, the scaffold has to possess a number of important characteristics. It needs to be biocompatible so the body doesn’t reject it, it needs to be bioactive so it will fuse to existing bone, it needs to withstand the same loads as the surrounding bone, and it must degrade as new bone grows through it.

Particularities

State

Categories

Chemical Symbol

CaO and SiO2

Maker

Dr Julian Jones, Imperial College London

Donated by

Dr. J Jones

Library Details

Site

Bloomsbury

Status

In Library

Location

Glass Shelves

Form

Foam

Handling guidance

Wash hands after handling.

Date entered collection

Friday 17th October, 2008

Keywords