Effects of hydroxyapatite dosage on mechanical and biological behaviors of polylactic acid composite materials

Due to the widespread use of bioresorbable polylactic acid (PLA) based materials in biomedical applications, there is an increasing need to obtain independent control of key properties such as mechanical strength, degradation rate and bioactivity in order to further enhance the performance of the PLA based medical implants. Because PLA composites containing hydroxyapatite (HAp) particles can augment cell growth and mechanical properties, in this present study, the effects of HAp dosages on various mechanical strengths and cell proliferation of PLA composites were further investigated. The information resulting from this study can assist in the optimizing of PLA composite formulas for specific medical applications.