The development and characterization of bioactive coatings for local drug delivery in orthopedic applications

Abstract Layer-by-layer bioactive coatings on AISI 316LVM and Ti90Al6V4 alloy were developed, showing great promise for biomedicine, especially as part of implantable metal-based composites. A corrosion study of the coated and uncoated samples was performed using electrochemistry. It was proven that such coatings do not increase the corrosion susceptibility of substrate materials. Controlled-release of a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (diclofenac) from the coatings as well as their positive influence on osteoblast growth for several days was proven. The layer-by-layer structure and drug loading were also investigated by means of surface analytical techniques, i.e. ATR-FTIR, ToF-SIMS, and AFM. Finally, the suitability of the prepared coatings for potential orthopedic applications was proven using various cell testing methods.