Bioactive Glass Applications: A Literature Review of Human Clinical Trials

Abstract

The use of bioactive glasses in dentistry, reconstructive surgery, and in the treatment of infections can be considered broadly beneficial based on the emerging literature about the potential bioactivity and biocompatibility of these materials, particularly with reference to Bioglass® 45S5, BonAlive® and 19-93B3 bioactive glasses. Several investigations have been performed (i) to obtain bioactive glasses in different forms, such as bulk materials, powders, composites, and porous scaffolds and (ii) to investigate their possible applications in the biomedical field. Although in vivo studies in animals provide us with an initial insight into the biological performance of these systems and represent an unavoidable phase to be performed before clinical trials, only clinical studies can demonstrate the behavior of these materials in the complex physiological human environment. This paper aims to carefully review the main published investigations dealing with clinical trials in order to better understand the performance of bioactive glasses, evaluate challenges, and provide an essential source of information for the tailoring of their design in future applications. Finally, the paper highlights the need for further research and for specific studies intended to assess the effect of some specific dissolution products from bioactive glasses, focusing on their osteogenic and angiogenic potential.

Bioactive Glasses in Periodontal Regeneration: Existing Strategies and Future Prospects—A Literature Review

“…In the in vitro study, BGs demonstrated an excellent ability to promote osteogenic differentiation, cell proliferation, and viability. Despite all these interesting features, it is also important to mention that BGs have some drawbacks, namely low fracture resistance in load bearing applications and the tendency to crystallize upon thermal treatments [ 24 ].…”

“…The sol-gel route requires a specific chemical approach with precursor polymerization at room temperature to form the glass network [ 23 ]. Even if the melt-quenching route is the most employed, sol-gel offers some advantages, i.e., the synthesis temperature is relatively low, the composition ratio can be easily modified, the standardization of the product’s particle size can be organized to obtain pure samples with high uniformity, and constituents are allowed to be doped [ 24 ].…”

“…Since BGs show intriguing properties considering their biocompatibility, cell response, adaptability to clinical features and antibacterial properties, they have been incorporated as filler in scaffolds for tooth and periodontal regeneration [ 24 ] ( Figure 2 ).…”

Innovative Concepts and Recent Breakthrough for Engineered Graft and Constructs for Bone Regeneration: A Literature Systematic Review

“…The recent advances in reconstructive dentistry are oriented towards using bioactive glasses due to the increased potential bioactivity and biocompatibility for bone regeneration procedures [ 85 ]. Recent studies reported that the biocompatibility of these biomaterials is correlated with the silicate-derived percentage range between 45 and 52%, which represents an optimal equilibrium between the tissue tolerance and the osteogenesis capability of the graft [ 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 , 89 ]. The bioglasses-acting mechanism is produced by the local release of ions and the generation of amorphous calcium phosphates precipitates that are able to generate a local change of the pH levels and osmotic flows [ 90 , 91 , 92 , 93 ].…”

Bioactive Bilayer Glass Coating on Porous Titanium Substrates with Enhanced Biofunctional and Tribomechanical Behavior

“…Bioactive coatings improve not only bone formation but also adhesion and fixation and should be biocompatible, nontoxic, non-carcinogenic, or allergenic, and due to their flexibility to adjust their composition, they present an extraordinary versatility [14][15][16][17][18][19]. In this sense, they have been widely used for biomedical applications in tissue regeneration or as a part of matrixes for the release of smart and targeted drugs [20,21].…”