Biomaterial developments for bone tissue engineering

The development of bone tissue engineering is directly related to changes i n materials technology. While the inclusion of materials requirements is st andard in the design process of engineered bone substitutes, it is also cri tical to incorporate clinical requirements in order to engineer a clinicall y relevant device. This review presents the clinical need for bone tissue-e ngineered alternatives to the present materials used in bone grafting techn iques, a status report on clinically available bone tissue-engineering devi ces, and recent advances in biomaterials research. The discussion of ongoin g research includes the current state of osseoactive factors and the delive ry of these factors using bioceramics and absorbable biopolymers. Suggestio ns are also presented as to the desirable design features that would make a n engineered device clinically effective. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. Al l rights reserved.