General review of titanium toxicity

Abstract

Background Titanium is a commonly used inert bio-implant material within the medical and dental fields. Although the use of titanium is thought to be safe with a high success rate, in some cases, there are rare reports of problems caused by titanium. In most of these problematic reports, only individual reports are dominant and comprehensive reporting has not been performed. This comprehensive article has been prepared to review the toxicity of titanium materials within the medical and dental fields. Methods We used online searching tools including MEDLINE (PubMed), Embase, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar by combining keywords such as “titanium implant toxicity,” “titanium implant corrosion,” “titanium implant allergy,” and “yellow nail syndrome.” Recently updated data has been collected and compiled into one of four categories: “the toxicity of titanium,” “the toxicity of titanium alloys,” “the toxicity of titanium implants,” and “diseases related to titanium.” Results Recent studies with regard to titanium toxicity have been increasing and have now expanded to the medical field in addition to the fields of environmental research and basic science. Problems that may arise in titanium-based dental implants include the generation of titanium and titanium alloy particles and ions deposited into surrounding tissues due to the corrosion and wear of implants, resulting in bone loss due to inflammatory reactions, which may lead to osseointegration failure of the dental implant. These titanium ions and particles are systemically deposited and can lead to toxic reactions in other tissues such as yellow nail syndrome. Additionally, implant failure and allergic reactions can occur due to hypersensitivity reactions. Zirconia implants can be considered as an alternative; however, limitations still exist due to a lack of long-term clinical data. Conclusions Clinicians should pay attention to the use of titanium dental implants and need to be aware of the problems that may arise from the use of titanium implants and should be able to diagnose them, in spite of very rare occurrence. Within the limitation of this study, it was suggested that we should be aware the rare problems of titanium toxicity.

Future prospects of zirconia for oral implants —A review

“…Despite decades of titanium (Ti) as the gold standard in oral implantology, the search for alternatives has been growing, because of its disadvantages of discoloration of the peri-implant soft tissue, possible hypersensitivity, and the debated contribution to peri-implantitis development [1][2][3] . Zirconia, tetragonal zirconia polycrystal (TZP) in particular, gained increasing importance due to their mechanical, esthetic and biocompatible performance for dental implants.…”

Impact of Laser Structuring on Medical-Grade Titanium: Surface Characterization and In Vitro Evaluation of Osteoblast Attachment

“…Even though titanium alloys are currently in clinical use, they contain leachable toxic elements such as vanadium and aluminum, which could be released due to corrosion or wear. In this context, the cytocompatibility [6]-or rather the toxicity [7]-of alloys or the interacting surfaces is one of the critical properties requiring the most attention. To reduce these risks and generate optimal osteointegrative long-term implants, current research focuses on alloy developments [8] or new surface techniques [7] to improve these materials in terms of corrosion and wear resistance, with simultaneous biomechanical stability.…”

Are Titania Photocatalysts and Titanium Implants Safe? Review on the Toxicity of Titanium Compounds

“…The interest in Ti properties has been continuously growing, because of its use as an inert bio-implant material for medical and dental applications [ 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 ]. The evidence of titanium toxicity has not been reported for many years, and thus titanium has been considered as an inert material with high biocompatibility.…”