Overview of Biocompatible Materials and Their Use in Medicine

This survey presents a thorough overview of the main types of biomaterials used for the manufacturing of implants. The use of different materials for the creation and refinement of medical devices aims at optimizing their properties and raising the level of safety for the patients. The purpose of the study is to classify the most common bulk materials used in medicine according to their nature, interaction with the host tissues and their function in the organisms. Some important advantages and disadvantages of the different classes of implant materials are considered. In the last few years there is a strong tendency toward the surface modification of biomedical devices. Various trends in processing of the materials are focused on increasing their corrosion resistance, wear resistance, biocompatibility and microbiological properties.