The presence of a fibrous tissue around orthopedic implants may lead to aseptic loosening, the main cause of implant failure. Tissue differentiation around implant (fibrous tissue instead of mineralized bone) is then a major parameter in the outcome success of an orthopedic implant. In this project, we propose to use the orthopedic implant as a drug delivery system in order to control the peri-implant tissue differentiation.
Specifically, by adding a bisphosphonate (Zoledronate) on an implant, we showed that not only a higher bone density was observed around the implant, but also its mechanical anchorage was greatly increased.
In parallel to the passvie delivery of drug, we also work on a smart delivery using mechanical stimulation as a release trigger.