Abstract

Bone grafts are widely used for augmentation procedures in oral and maxillofacial surgery, with autogenous bone being the gold standard. Recently, the focus of research has shifted towards synthetic bone substitutes, as no second surgery is needed and large quantities of graft can easily be provided. Within the broad range of bone substitutes, synthetic hydroxyapatite has drawn much attention, as they are considered to be biocompatible, non-immunogenic, osteoconductive and osteoinductive. Scope of this review is to summarize existing knowledge concerning the molecular, cellular and pharmaceutical aspects of synthetic bone substitutes for oral and maxillofacial grafting.

Keywords: Biomaterials, synthetic bone substitutes, hydroxyapatite, osteoinduction, calcium phosphate, degradation.