Degradable implants made of magnesium alloys

摘要

The article presents results of an interdisciplinary project focusing on the development of degradable magnesium-implants. Those implants do not need to be removed after the healing process and therefore provide a huge benefit for patients and the health care system. Different magnesium fracture-screw designs are investigated. Furthermore, the influence of the machining on the surface and subsurface layers of the specimen is analysed. In laboratory corrosion tests AZ91 samples show a strong local corrosion attack. A more homogenous corrosion attack is observed on Magnesium-Calcium-alloys, which suggests that this alloy is more suitable for degradable implants. However, the corrosion resistance of the investigated magnesium alloys still needs to be increased significantly. The implant geometry has to be adapted to the material loss during in vivo degradation.