Improved biological performance of Ti implants due to surface modification by micro-arc oxidation

Enhanced Cell Integration to Titanium Alloy by Surface Treatment with Microarc Oxidation: A Pilot Study

“…Several studies have demonstrated the influence of surface roughness on ALP activity [12,22,35]. We could not, however, corroborate the finding of ALP activity increasing with the roughness parameters, as reported by Kim et al [16], though this discrepancy may be attributed to the short duration (21 days) of our experiments.…”

“…This method, which increases surface roughness, forms TiO 2 on the surface through the oxidation process, and incorporates calcium or phosphorus ions into the surface layer, and is beneficial to osteoblastic cell activity [1,21,22,38]. MAO forms a relatively thick TiO 2 layer by applying a positive voltage above a certain point to the titanium [22].…”

“…MAO forms a relatively thick TiO 2 layer by applying a positive voltage above a certain point to the titanium [22]. In this process, the repeated breakdown and regeneration of TiO 2 results in porous and rough surfaces [22,33]. Components of the surface commonly consist of calcium and phosphate and contain a porous structure with pores approximately the size of a micron or submicron, which facilitates osseointegration [14,15,21,23,26].…”

“…Components of the surface commonly consist of calcium and phosphate and contain a porous structure with pores approximately the size of a micron or submicron, which facilitates osseointegration [14,15,21,23,26]. Moreover, MAO is a simple, controllable, and cost-effective method [22], the latter even more so than HA coatings. The properties of the oxide layer, such as its thickness, microstructure, roughness, and concentrations of Ca and P are easily controllable by adjusting the voltage, current, processing time, and the concentration of the electrolyte during the MAO process [14,31,32].…”

“…Microarc oxidation (MAO) provides nanoporous pits, thick oxide layers, and the incorporation of calcium and phosphorus into the coating layer which results in improved osteoblast cell responses, such as an enhanced rate of actin, vinculin cytoskeletal reorganization, and the formation of integrins mediating osteoblast adhesion [7,14,23,37,38]. The average roughness of a Ti-alloy surface, treated by the MAO process, is about 0.3 to 0.5 lm [22]. Smooth surfaces are sufficient for dental implants for early fixation and long-term mechanical stability possibly owing to the screw fixation and their small size.…”