Influences of Biphasic Calcium Phosphate Scaffold Porosity on Bone Tissue-Engineering: Literature Review

Periodontitis is an assembly of inflammatory bacterial diseases affecting the tissues that surround and support the teeth. It is a disease that involves continual loss of the surrounding bone that may eventually lead to loosening and loss of teeth if left untreated. Treatment modalities after periodontal breakdown and destruction are complex and challenging therefore grafts are often used as a treatment alternative for bone restoration. Autografts and allografts used to restore form and function after bone loss have varying degrees of success and carries significant limits and risks. Biphasic calcium phosphate (BCP) bone substitutes from hydroxyapatite (HA) and β-tricalcium phosphate(β-TCP) is a synthetic bone graft that is biocompatible and osteoconductive, which now one of the most hopeful alternative to autologous bone grafts. The effect of synthetic graft on new bone growth is primarily determinde by scaffold architecture that includes macroporosity, microporosity, and pore interconnectivity. Macroporosity contributes to osteogenesis by inducing cell ingrowth. Microporosity facilitates bone growth into scaffolds by providing attachment accessibility for osteoblasts. Pore interconnectivity contributes to bone deposition rate. All of these characteristics has an important role in determining the rate and degree of bone growth. The purpose of this review focuses on the architectural characteristics of BCP for optimal osteoconductivity in bone tissue engineering, thus providing an ideal treatment modality for the periodontally involved patients.