BACKGROUND:The nano-hydroxyapatite has obvious advantages in bone repairing and reconstruction, but its clinical application is limited for its low osteoinductive activity and poor mechanical properties. To overcome these defects, researchers, based on the bionics principles, composite nano-hydroxyapatite with inorganic or/and organic materials to get various biomimetic composite materials.
OBJECTIVE:To review the research and application of nano-hydroxyapatite/polyamide 66 biocomposites. METHODS:A computer-based search of PubMed database was undertaken with the keywords of“nano, hydroxyapatite, polyamide 66”in English to retrieve the relevant articles published from January 1987 to
December 2012. Simultaneously, the relevant articles between January 1987 to December 2012 were searched in CNKI database with the key words of“nano, hydroxyapatite, polyamide 66”in Chinese. A total of 93 literatures were retrieved, and final y 56 standard literatures were included.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:The nano-hydroxyapatite/polyamide 66 biocomposites have appropriate thermostability and mechanical properties as wel as good biocompatibility. So far, the research and application of nano-hydroxyapatite/polyamide 66 biocomposites mainly focus on artificial vertebral body, lamina, and cage. The satisfactory clinical effects of the biocomposites show their broad clinical application prospects. However, there are stil many problems to be solved. For example, there are no detailed long-term fol ow-up data concerning osteogenic induction and degradation. Additional y, current studies focus on the bio-safety of materials in the aspects of cytology and histology rather than at the molecular level.