This book reviews the current understanding of the mechanical, chemical and biological processes that are responsible for the degradation of a variety of implant materials. All 18 chapters will be written by internationally renowned experts to address both fundamental and practical aspects of research into the field. Different failure mechanisms such as corrosion, fatigue, and wear will be reviewed, together with experimental techniques for monitoring them, either in vitro or in vivo. Procedures for implant retrieval and analysis will be presented. A variety of biomaterials (stainless steels, titanium and its alloys, nitinol, magnesium alloys, polyethylene, biodegradable polymers, silicone gel, hydrogels, calcium phosphates) and medical devices (orthopedic and dental implants, stents, heart valves, breast implants) will be analyzed in detail. The book will serve as a broad reference source for graduate students and researchers studying biomedicine, corrosion, surface science, and electrochemistry.

First book since 1985 to focus on the degradation of impant materials

Medical implant corrosion: Electrochemistry at metallic biomaterial surfaces.- Degradation of titanium and its alloys.- Degradation of dental implants.- In vivo aging and corrosion aspects of dental implants.- Biodegradable metals.- Degradable and bioactive synthetic composite scaffolds for bone tissue engineering.- Biodegradation of calcium phosphate cement composites.- Enzyme-promoted degradation of polymeric matrices for controlled drug delivery: Analytical model and numerical simulations.- Degradation of bioceramics.- Fundamentals of tribology and the use of Ferrography and bio-Ferrography for monitoring the degradation of natural and artificial joints.- Fatigue failure of materials for medical devices.- Hypersensitivity to implant debris.- Implant infections and infection resistant materials.- Biomaterial calcification: Mechanisms and prevention.- Orthopaedic implant retrieval and failure analysis.- The use of finite element analysis in design, life prediction and failure analysis of biomaterials and medical devices.- Biological safety evaluation of polymers.- Biological responses to and toxicity of nanoscale implant materials.