Combining bioresorbable polyesters and bioactive glasses: Orthopedic applications of composite implants and bone tissue engineering scaffolds

This overview showcases the current state of the art in the fabrication, properties and applications of bioactive glass-polyester composites for dentistry, craniomaxillofacial surgery, orthopedics and bone tissue engineering. The combination of these materials is a successful strategy to simultaneously modulate and optimize the degradation rate, mechanical properties, cell response and osteostimulation of bone substitutes. Two major approaches can be identified: bone regeneration or bone repair. The first is performed using porous scaffolding materials, the second one by dense molded implants. For both strategies, the synthesis, processing and characterization of materials are presented based on a comprehensive review of the available literature. Relevant recent in vitro and in vivo studies are also covered. Current and potential future applications of this interesting family of biocomposites are discussed. The literature search revealed a considerable body of work investigating the biological performance of these composites, evidencing the interest on the topic. In particular, the use of polyester/BG composites is well-studied in terms of material fabrication, as well as characterization of physicochemical and in vitro biological properties. On the other hand, there is much less evidence of translational research efforts. It is apparent that future research will have to focus on the collection of more in vivo and clinical data to broaden the knowledge of the time dependent performance of these materials in realistic conditions