Bioactive Hydroxyapatite/ Polyvinyl Alcohol Composite for Repair and Regeneration of Articular Cartilage

Abstract

In this work, a new kind of bioactive PVA/HA hydrogels use as artificial cartilage were prepared by in situ sol-gel synthesis method. Simulated experiments were performed to evaluate and compare the bioactive ability and properties of the hydrogels in simulated body solution. PVA/HA Cartilage implants were developed and used to repair articular cartilage defect in rabbit knee. The macroscopic and histological observation of animal experiments displayed that the implanted hydrogels combined tightly to ambient tissues, and some bone-like tissue grew into the bottom of the implants from the base-bone to form more deep-set binding.