Experimental study on the osseointegration of foam TiC/Ti composites

Macroporous ceramics have demonstrated osteoconductive properties because of their biocompatibility and 3D macroporous structure, and these materials have recently been widely studied as bone replacement materials. The foam TiC/Ti composites discussed in this study have good mechanical properties, balancing out metallic toughness and ceramic strength. Furthermore, because of the high porosity and pore connectivity of these TiC/Ti composites, they have the potential to be a new bone replacement material. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the osseointegration of foam TiC/Ti composites, preliminarily discuss the TiC/Ti ossification mechanism, and to obtain reliable data on the use of foam TiC/Ti composites as bone replacement materials. The foam TiC/Ti composites were sited in 40 Japanese white rabbits for 4, 8, 12 and 24 weeks. The foam TiC/Ti composites were compared to foam SiC. M-CT (micro-computed tomography) analysis, histological analysis, SEM (scanning electron microscopy) observation and EDS (energy-dispersive x-ray spectrometer) analysis were conducted to estimate the osseointegration of the materials. The histological observations and quantitative analysis exhibited significantly more ossification area (volume), trabeculae maturity, and calcium and phosphorus content in the foam TiC/Ti composites compared to the foam SiC (p < 0.05). The results from this study suggest that the foam TiC/Ti composites possess good osseointegration capacity and have the potential to be a new bone replacement material.