Avaliação do tântalo após tratamento de superfície com oxidação por plasma eletrolítico (PEO)

Abstract

Every year scientists and biomedical manufacturers bring to the market new biocompatible materials to use as prosthetic devices for the human body. Following that trend, oral implants manufactured with a Tantalum alloy started to be marketed in 2010 by a top orthopedic company. Although this metal has already been tested in dentistry and did not show satisfactory results from an experimental as well as a clinical standpoint in the past, the lack of a successful record was due to a poor comprehension of many important factors involved in the Osseointegration phenomenon. From the fixture design to the understanding of bone biology, the years of research have shown that survival and success in oral implantology is much more than the alloy can tell. And since bone histology has proved that Tantalum has a good healing response, we decided to subject this metal to a surface treatment similar to those regularly applied to Titanium fixtures. Using an especially PEO (Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation) devised protocol we have tried to evaluate the production of a surface oxidation and salt deposition on the metal surface and verify them using SEM (Scanning Electron Microscopy) and EDS (Energy Dispersive X-Ray Detector or EDX). For that matter, four groups were prepared: Group 1 non-altered Tantalum metal sheets surfaces; Group 2 Tantalum metal sheets exposed to PEO for 1 minute; Group 3 Tantalum metal sheets exposed to PEO for 3 minutes; Group 4 Tantalum metal sheets exposed to PEO for 5 minutes. The results were very satisfactory regarding salt deposition and surface modification and similar to those already seen on Titanium after anodization.