title: A problem with modern dental materials.
abstract: It may come as a surprise to learn that there is more than one discipline in medicine dealing with artificial organs. The obvious one is bio-engineering, which is largely concerned with fashioning existing biologically acceptable materials into useful spare parts such as hip or knee joints. The materials themselves hardly change, and the difference between rival prostheses lies more in design than novel chemistry. This is the world of titanium or cobalt-chromium joint designs, bone screws and plates, orthotic limbs, supports and wheelchairs, and futuristic ideas such as miniature video cameras for artificial eyes.
authors.affiliation: Department of conservative dentistry, Edinburgh University.
authors.forename: R D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Bagnall
mesh_terms: D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000737:chemistry; D003764:Dental Materials / Q000737:chemistry; D008422:Materials Testing
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D003764:Dental Materials