Fixating on PEEK: The Implant Advantage

It’s difficult to talk about spinal devices today without mentioning the popularity of polyetheretherketone, the thermoplastic more commonly known as PEEK. It was originally introduced by Victrex PLC, then Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) in the early 1980s. PEEK is based on the polyaryletherketone (PAEK) family and is commonly used in various engineering and medical applications. PEEK has been used for the development of medical devices as far back as the 1980s, but in 1999, Invibio Biomaterial Solutions developed the first implantable PEEK polymer: PEEK-OPTIMA. Invibio was the sole supplier of the implant-grade PEEK polymer until the late 2000s, when Solvay Specialty Polymers and Evonik Industries entered the market and later began selling PEEK polymers for implants. In 2010 and 2013 respectively, the first spinal implants using Solvay and Evonik-manufactured PEEK were approved by FDA. Years later, PEEK has continued to pioneer the way as an alternative to metal implants and has set a new standard for spinal fusion. Beyond the implant market, various forms of PEEK (natural, color, glass, and carbon filled) are used in numerous surgical instrument applications. Why does PEEK have such staying power in the medical industry, and what difference does this material make for the end-user? It’s a simple question, but one that has a multifaceted answer. The Medical Properties and Benefits of PEEK Being a high-performance thermoplastic, PEEK has...
Source: MDDI - Category: Medical Devices Authors: Tags: Materials Source Type: news