Ian D. Dickey
Graduate School of Biomedical Science and Engineering Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Maine, Room 307A - Jenness Hall, Orono, Maine, U.S.A. 04469
Titanium metal devices have been used extensively in the past for orthopedic applications, such as external fixative pins, hip replacements and other femoral prosthetic devices. The challenge of employing such devices for transcutaneous applications is inherent in the high rates of infections often associated with implantation through dermal layers. In the present work transcutaneous foam metal devices have been shown to exhibit biocompatibility and lower infection rates by promoting the in-growth of soft tissue. Such devices, when implanted through dermal layers in a transcutaneous fashion, form a biological seal that prevents bacteria from migrating into subcutaneous tissue. Through additive manufacturing, we have developed novel devices of varying material and pore geometries that utilize a highly porous network that facilitates dermal and subcutaneous tissue in-growth. The utilization of such an approach in the efforts to develop an implant that could anchor an artificial limb directly to bone could hold great promise in the future of biomedical science and potentially revolutionize prosthetics.