A Review on Surface Treatment of Stainless Steel Orthopedic Implants

It is expected that in future, there will be an immense usage of implantable devices which will cause the number of infections to increase naturally because some patients are unable to autonomously prevent formation of bio film on implant surfaces. The ideal implant should be able to promote osteointegration, deter bacterial adhesion and minimize prosthetic infection. Recent developments in material science and cell biology have seen the development of new orthopedic implant coatings to address these issues. Coatings consisting of bio ceramics, extracellular matrix proteins, biological peptides or growth factors impart bioactivity and biocompatibility to the metallic surface of conventional orthopedic prosthesis that will promote bone growth and differentiation of stem cells into osteoblasts leading to enhanced osteointegration of the implant. Furthermore, several coatings such as silver, nitric oxide, antibiotics, antiseptics and antimicrobial peptides with anti-microbial properties have also been developed, which promises in reducing bacterial adhesion and prosthetic infections. In this paper, we are discussing various coatings provided on stainless steel. This review summarizes some of the recent developments in coatings for stainless steel orthopedic implants.