Experimental study on magnesium wire–polylactic acid biodegradable composite implants under in vitro material degradation and fatigue loading conditions

Abstract

This study investigated the fatigue life of biodegradable magnesium wire–polylactic acid (Mg/PLA) composite implants during the initial patient rehabilitation period under physiological loads through experimental and finite element methods. Under a simulated body fluid condition, the fatigue life was observed to be completely affected by material degradation, which accelerated the pitting corrosion of the composite bone plate. The mechanical behaviour of Mg/PLA composite bone plate was investigated under physiological loading conditions for the case of a tibial fracture with a 3 mm gap. A three-point bending fatigue test setup was employed to validate the fatigue characteristics of composite specimens. Finally, to alleviate the generated stress and enhance the fatigue resistance of fully biodegradable composites, a hybrid composite bone plate is proposed. At the screw section, the hybrid composite is partly composed of a comparatively more fatigue-safe non-degradable glass–polypropylene composite, which improves the healing performance of the fractured tibia. © 2021 Elsevier Ltd