S. Vercaigne et al., HISTOMORPHOMETRICAL AND MECHANICAL EVALUATION OF TITANIUM PLASMA-SPRAY-COATED IMPLANTS PLACED IN THE CORTICAL BONE OF GOATS, Journal of biomedical materials research, 41(1), 1998, pp. 41-48
The aim of this study was to investigate the biological and mechanical
response of bone to titanium plasma-sprayed implants of different rou
ghnesses. Three types of titanium plasma-spray coating were applied to
beam-shaped implants: Ti2, Ti3, and Ti4, with a Ra of 16.5, 21.4, and
37.9 mu m, respectively. An Al2O3 grit-blasted implant (Ti-un) with a
Ra of 4.7 mu was used as a control. In total, 72 implants were insert
ed in the tibial cortical bone of nine adult female goats. These impla
nts were evaluated histologically and mechanically 3 months after impl
antation. At the end of the experiment, of the 72 inserted implants, t
wo implants tone Ti2 and one Ti4) were lost. Histological evaluation o
f the other retrieved implants revealed a uniform bone reaction for al
l implants. The unloaded plasma-spray coatings showed no signs of dela
mination at the implantcoating interface. Occasionally, particles of t
he Ti4 coating broke free and were found near the implant. Histomorpho
metry revealed no difference in bone contact for the different implant
s (P > 0.05). Furthermore, the push-out test showed no significant dif
ference (P > 0.05). Linear regression showed no interaction between th
e push-out values and the roughness values (r = 0.5). On the basis of
these results, it may be concluded that the used surface roughnesses d
id not lead to differences in bone response or mechanical attachment s
trength in goat cortical bone. (C) 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.