Saturday, January 21, 2017

How About Nanofibers for Orthopedic Surgery - Science

In my life, I have broken my bones the way people break up oyster crackers for their Skyline chili so I have some familiarity with what it takes to fix them including a titanium shoulder.  Nanofibers may provide a better way.  (Science Daily:  Nanofibers developed for healing bone fractures)

In his doctoral research, Jani Holopainen of the Department of Chemistry at the University of Helsinki has developed processes for fibrous and thin-film biomaterials that can be used as scaffolding for bone regeneration and in other bone impants.  He also studied the apparatus used for nanofiber production.

- SD

A bone implant is exactly the circumstance with my shoulder so this research specifically addresses that problem.  I hope you haven't experienced it but the traditional type of orthopedic approach to fixing bad breaks needs hammers and screwdrivers to insert the pins.  The researchers hope to obviate that and my beater of a body sure hopes they can do it so others do not need to experience those pins since usually there will be follow-up surgery, possibly years later, to remove them.


"At best, bone-reforming scaffolds that regenerate at the same rate as bones could be used as implants. The scaffolds activate the bone cells to generate new bone that slowly replaces the disintegrating scaffold and the impant exits the body naturally without separate removal surgery," Jani Holopainen says.

- SD

Right away, there's a win since there's no need for follow-up surgery to remove anything.


"This promising method still has a long way to go before it will become a real medical application, though cellular tests have already been made," says Professor Mikko Ritala of the Department of Chemistry and the Atomic Layer Deposition centre of excellence at the University of Helsinki, who was the advisor of the doctoral research.

- SD

The science is not ready to release yet but the hope is there and it looks real.  There are additional links in the article and you may wish to pursue this further.


No need for the sci fi editorial when it's sci fi already.

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