ABSTRACT
Today, medical implants can be used in almost every organ of the human body. An artificial implant can be defined as a permanent or temporary device to repair or replace a missing biological structure or function. Apart from the biological acceptance of such implants, they ideally should have biomechanical properties that mimic those of the autogeneous tissues they replace without causing any adverse effects. For some applications implants may contain electronics such as artificial pacemaker and cochlear implants; other implants are bioactive, such as drug-eluting stents in the aorta and coronary arteries. The worldwide market for biomaterials is estimated to be in the range of US$ 12 billion. Nevertheless, there is a continuous shift in the requirements and, therefore type and function of the materials needed as well. The therapy for the treatment of diseases or accidents by medical implants is nowadays moving more and more from replacement of the affected tissue, joint or organ to repair and now even towards regeneration, assisting the body’s own repair mechanism and requiring ideally only minimally invasive surgery.
