Abstract
To gain insight on the early biological response to commercial pure titanium (cpTi), the surface properties of cpTi implants retrieved from rat bone were examined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). To this end, semi-cylindrical bullets, 1.1 mm in diameter and 3.5 mm in length, were implanted into the femurs of Wistar rats and then retrieved after either 3 hours or 7 days. Regardless of implantation interval, elements of Ti, O, C, and N were observed on the retrieved implants and that the thickness of the adsorbed film (mainly protein) was estimated to be about 2.5 nm. Small amounts of both Ca and P were also detected, whereby the Ca/P atomic ratios after 3 hours and 7 days were very small compared to that of hydroxyapatite. Furthermore, no correlation was found between the Ca and P distributions in the element maps. In conclusion, no calcium phosphate compounds were formed on the implant in vivo after 7 days.
