Getting Out the Thorn
Biomaterials become friendlier to the body
The practice of replacing injured or worn-out body parts with something other than flesh and blood goes back centuries. But not until recently have doctors been inserting completely humanmade materials into their patients, and today, it’s downright routine. Each year, millions of patients are fitted with temporary or permanent parts, such as plastic heart valves and catheters and silicon breast implants. To be sure, it’s a medical marvel.
However, although these medical insertions are often referred to as biomaterials, they’re often invaders as far as the patient’s body is concerned. Bodies treat an artificial implant “just like a thorn,” says James Bryers of the University of Connecticut in Farmington. They try to get rid of it.