Journal of the American Ceramic Society, Vol.89, No.9, 2977-2979, 2006
Influence of gamma irradiation on the mechanical strength and in vitro biodegradation of porous hydroxyapatite/collagen composite
Gamma irradiation treatment (GIT) is the most widely used sterilization method for biomaterials in spite of the potential to degrade polymers. The adverse effects of GIT on the mechanical properties and biological stabilities of porous hydroxyapatite/collagen (HAp/Col) composites were investigated in this study. Those properties of a porous HAp/Col composite stabilized by dehydrothermal treatment (DHT) drastically decreased by GIT in the same manner as conventional pure Col materials. DHT after GIT could partially eliminate the adverse effects, due to the introduction of cross-linkage among the degraded Col molecules.