Metal Nanobumps For Better Artificial Body Parts

Roland Piquepaille writes "Everybody seems concerned these days by the risks associated with the use of nanotechnologies. So I'm pleased to report that Purdue engineers have proven that metal nano-bumps could improve artificial body parts, such as hips or knees. They based their theory on a simple fact. Surface bumps on conventional alloys used in prostheses are in the micron range, while they are ten times smaller in natural bones, around 100 nanometers. They thought a reduction of the size of these bumps in the prostheses would also reduce the risk of rejection by the body. They limited their experiments to petri dishes, but showed that adherence of new body cells to their new metal alloys was dramatically better than with existing alloys. Ssveral years will pass before improved artificial hips come to market. But the needs are growing. This overview contains more details and references."

Comments

All kidding aside, please.

[geekwench]

Yes, people are living longer, and thus seeing the need for more joint replacement surgeries. More; and, sadly, more frequent, due to rejection problems. I can't imaging being a halfway compassionate surgeon, having to tell an otherwise healthy and active 55-year-old that the best she can expect from her new knee is 10 years, tops, before they have to do the procedure all over again. This discovery has the potential to make repeat surgeries a thing of the past. However, the folks for whom this is absolutely fsking fantastic news are the people like me, and a couple of good acquaintances, who have congenital joint deformities.

One gal has gone through her second complete hip replacement. Why? Because the first one rejected. She's not even 40. I was born mostly missing one hip socket. I got lucky; the socket finally grew deep enough to work, but I could still be staring down the edge of a scalpel in the future. And if I'm going to go through the 6 - 9 damn months that it usually takes to get mobile again, I'm going to want that new joint to outlast me, if at all possible.
Add in things like injuries that can't be corrected by arthroscopic surgery, compound or crush fractures, bone-lengthening surgeries for deformed limbs, and a host of other skeletal problems, and I'd say that this research stands to make life better for a whole lot of people out there. IMNSGDHO.