Titanium material implants

Abstract

One of many universal requirements of dental or orthopedic implants, wherever they are used in the vital body, is that the implant system should be biologically functioning. To achieve the biological functionality, the implant should meet several requirements for compatibility. These include biological compatibility and mechanical compatibility. It has now been recognized that morphological compatibility and crystallographic compatibility should be added to these two compatibility requirements. Hence, the present invention provides a method of forming a certain type of crystalline structure of titanium oxide and controlled surface roughness to meet both morphological and crystallographic compatibilities. It has been further determined that a chemical treatment (using sodium hydroxide) alone or followed by in-air oxidation, or acid treatment (a mixed aqueous solution of hydrofluoric acid and nitric acid), followed by sodium hydroxide treatment, furthermore followed by in-air oxidation provide for advantageous surface modifications to create a complex mixture of rutile with anatase and/or brookite types of titanium oxide and provide a most favorable surface for wettability and an acceptable range of surface roughness.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.