MAOmed – Anti-Inflammatory Surface Coating Enhances the Compatibility of Bone Implants

Why do we need a new solution?

Implants effectively stabilize injured bones or replace bone segments. However, painful infections can occur, complicating or even preventing healing. The risk is higher in heavily contaminated wounds, which are especially common in war zones where many bone injuries need treatment. Currently, clinics in Ukraine are struggling with numerous poorly healing bone injuries that can lead to permanent damage. This is an issue that researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials IFAM in Bremen aim to address with a novel technology.

Who will benefit from the new technology?

The MAOmed team has developed a novel anti-inflammatory coating for titanium implants that could accelerate bone healing and reduce the risk of complications. For patients, this would mean less postoperative pain and better prospects of full recovery without lasting damage. Faster healing and smoother therapy would also ease the burden on hospitals, especially on staffing and bed capacity. The coating can basically be used worldwide to improve outcomes for hip, knee or dental implants, for example.

How does the new solution work?

The researchers use a process known as micro-arc oxidation (MAO) to produce the innovative surface. The metal parts are immersed in a conductive electrolyte containing silver salts and exposed to high voltage (up to 300 volts). Within minutes, high-energy plasma discharges form a silver‑doped oxide layer on the implant, where targeted voltage pulses create pores for silver nanoparticles to be incorporated. The resulting porous structure can absorb antibiotics or other active substances – much like a sponge.

The electrolyte and process parameters control the pore size and structure, thereby influencing the dosage of active substances. Once the MAO coating is complete, the researchers immerse the parts in a highly concentrated antibiotic solution. Capillary forces then uniformly fill the pores with the drug, which is later released in the body. Drug loading and release kinetics depend on the pore structure. The MAO coating is well tolerated by living tissue and supports rapid implant ingrowth.

What makes the project unique?

This surface treatment is completely new to implant technology. There are only a few medical devices that use antibiotic coatings. Where they exist, manufacturing is typically much more complex than with MAOmed. This is because Fraunhofer’s process is particularly simple and cost-effective: Essentially a power supply and a cooling unit for the bath are sufficient. If necessary, the coating can therefore be applied in the operating room, including under improvised conditions, as encountered in crisis zones.

Why is the Fraunhofer Future Foundation supporting this project?

The Fraunhofer Future Foundation is supporting MAOmed within its “Rebuilding Ukraine” special program. The goal is to improve treatment outcomes for war injuries and spare patients avoidable inflammation and consequential harm. Lower infection rates would also reduce the burden of follow-up care on the healthcare system.
In addition, MAOmed is strengthening the long-term scientific partnership between researchers in Germany and Ukraine. The project involves researchers from Fraunhofer IFAM and a medical team from the UNBROKEN National Rehabilitation Center in Lviv, Ukraine’s largest institution for the clinical care of war veterans. Both partners are planning to jointly scale and deploy MAOmed technology.