Porous metal materials for applications in orthopedic field: A review on mechanisms in bone healing

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

• Level A · Stronger Clinical Evidence
• Level B · Emerging clinical evidence with positive signals
• Level C · Early human research exploring benefits
• Level D · Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studies
• Emerging · Emerging topic under active research

Abstract (original English)

Background Porous metal materials have been widely studied for applications in orthopedic field, owing to their excellent features and properties in bone healing. Porous metal materials with different compositions, manufacturing methods, and porosities have been developed. Whereas, the systematic mechanisms on how porous metal materials promote bone healing still remain unclear. Methods This review is concerned on the porous metal materials from three aspects with accounts of specific mechanisms, inflammatory regulation, angiogenesis and osteogenesis. We place great emphasis on different cells regulated by porous metal materials, including mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), macrophages, endothelial cells (ECs), etc. Result The design of porous metal materials is diversified, with its varying pore sizes, porosity material types, modification methods and coatings help researchers create the most experimentally suitable and clinically effective scaffolds. Related signal pathways presented from different functions showed that porous metal materials could change the behavior of cells and the amount of cytokines, achieving good influence on osteogenesis. Conclusion This article summarizes the current progress achieved in the mechanism of porous metal materials promoting bone healing. By modulating the cellular behavior and physiological status of a spectrum of cellular constituents, such

Evidence level

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

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