Biomaterials
-
Glues and adhesives attach to a surface principally involving molecular attraction, whereas cements mostly work through mechanical interlocking. The adhesive and its degradation products must be biocompatible: chemical, clinical, legal, physical aspects are considered; the toxicity of even minor components must be extremely reduced. The idea of bone bonding using biological materials has been proposed by Gluck, in Berlin, more than a century ago. ⋯ Charnley used self-curing acrylic cement to bond a femoral head prosthesis into a femur. When adhesives are used to bond tissues, the polymer acts as a barrier between the growing edges and delay healing; the adhesive tends to be rapidly isolated from the bone by a fibrotic, non-adhesive capsule. No proof exists concerning the osteogenic potential of fibrin sealing (FS); its beneficial effect on bone formation has been questioned even if there is some evidence that FS should influence the early phases of bone repair and may help to solve the problem of reattachment of small osteocartilagenous fragments following joint trauma.