Inion^® Products

To date, Inion has developed and launched products based on its Inion Optima^TM family of biodegradable materials and associated custom instruments in five strategic business areas sold globally:

• Spine Surgery

• Specialty Orthopaedics

• Craniomaxillofacial (CMF) Surgery

• Dental Surgery

Inion scientists have perfected the process of blending common biocompatible polymers to produce a range of products with varying strength and degradation profiles that can be tailored for use in many surgical practices.

The main characteristics a fixation system includes:

• Adequate strength and rigidity to align, fix and support the injury site

• Good handling properties in terms of malleability and ease of shaping implant to fit

• Safe and non-toxic, and causes no adverse reactions

• Avoidance of implant removal operation owing to adverse reactions or implant loosening

• Lack of interference with bone healing caused by "stress shielding" *

• Lack of intracranial implant migration or restruction of growth (in pediatric cases)

• Lack of visibility and palpability

• Lack of imaging interference (x-ray, MRI, etc.)

*Stress shielding is a condition where a permanent implant removes all the load from the bone as it heals resulting in atrophy or degradation and ultimately weakness of the underlying bone.

For the past 20 years titanium has been the most widely used material for fixing fractures both for elective and emergency surgery. While metal has the desired strength and rigidity to allow the healing process to begin, there are a number of issues associated with using permanent titanium systems:

• Cranial growth restriction

• Accumulation of metals in tissues

• Adverse effects of metals may necessitate removal operation         

• Too stiff for optimal healing – stress shielding can result in bone atrophy and degradation

• Intracranial implant migration                                                                                                                                                                                             
• Implant palpability, temperature sensitivity and, occasionally, visibility                                                                                                                                                                       
• Imaging and radiotherapy interference                                                                                                                                                                   
• Potential for cross contamination – range of implants are sterilised for each operation, and unused implants are re-sterilised for subsequent use  

These issues have resulted in surgeons requesting an alternative plating system to titanium. Biodegradable plating systems possess many of the positive aspects of the metal systems, without the disadvantages:

• Non-metallic

• No long-term implant palpability or temperature sensitivity

• Predictable degradation to provide progressive bone loading and no stress shielding, leading to better bone healing

• Reduced patient trauma and cost

• No second surgery required for implant removal

• No imaging interference

•  Provided sterile