2018 年 41 巻 2 号 p. 51-55
Carbonate apatite(CO3Ap) is a main inorganic component of human bone and is resorbed and replaced with bone. We have succeeded in fabricating low crystalline CO3Ap without sintering by dissolution-precipitation reaction using calcium hydroxide as a precursor. CO3Ap showed excellent biocompatibility and faster bone formation compared to other bone substitutes(anorganic bovine bone and hydroxyapatite) in rabbit femur and dog mandible. A clinical study on the effectiveness and safety of CO3Ap granules in sinus floor augmentation was successfully concluded in 2016. CO3Ap granules were approved by the Japanese government in 2017, and launched in 2018. Furthermore, we have succeeded in developing porous CO3Ap granules and aim to use them as a scaffold for bone regenerative medicine.