There may be alternative coatings with advantages in bone remodeling and transport of bone-active substances.
Porous biomaterials that simultaneously mimic the topological, mechanical, and mass transport properties of bone are in great demand but are rarely found in the literature.
To allow transport of a bone segment without rotational deformity, the nail is supported by two proximal and two distal transverse interlocking holes with a diameter of 6 mm each.
The transported segment of bone was almost always held with 3 screws in the axial fixator and with 2 in the circular.
The transported segment of bone can be deviated as it passes through the soft tissues, leading to translation at the docking site.
Results achieved in mechanical experiments and in the cadaver study provide proof of concept that the mechanism designed is able to transport a segment of bone in the femur.
There is also some evidence that nutrient transport is affected in disc degeneration in vivo [ 82], and the transport of solutes from bone to disc measured in vitro was significantly lower in degenerate than in normal discs [ 65].
The original corticotomy is not recommended for perfect and well-localised bone interruption in case of bone transport, where bone segments are short and fragile.
The optimal time for removal of the spacer and initiation of bone transport remains unclear.
The average distance of bone transport was 7.6 ± 3.5 cm (range 3 15 cm).
