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Titanium and its alloys are widely used as dental and orthopaedic implants because of their desirable mechanical properties and biocompatibility. However, implant failures due to bacterial infections occur in many cases unexpectedly. Formation of a biofilm on the implant surfaces facilitates growth of colony of bacteria which in turn reduces the effectiveness of antibacterial drugs. Hydrophilicity of implant surfaces diminishes the chances of biofilm formation. Micro surface features are created on the Ti6Al4V implant surface using a pulsed Nd-YAG laser and its influence on water wettability (and thus on hydrophilicity) has been studied and compared with a polished surface. Strains of Staphylococcus aureus have been inoculated on the test specimens and the bacterial adherence have been compared. The results show that micro-textured surfaces of Ti6Al4V have improved water wettability and thus are more hydrophilic than polished surface. This has reduced the formation of biofilm and bacterial growth.

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