Based on the literature, corrosion is a problem that leads to implant removal. Therefore I suggest  the use of bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) in orthopedic applications due to their enhanced corrosion resistance and high strength.

Stainless steel is used in medical applications because of how easy it is to form it, its strength, and low cost. This material used in fracture fixation applications is susceptible to pitting and crevice corrosion. According to the 1995 paper Failures in stainless steel orthopaedic implant devices: a survey, “It has been estimated that 10–20% of all stainless steel implants need to be prematurely removed, and while corrosion was identified as the primary cause for nearly a quarter of these premature removals, nearly all instances of implant removal showed evidence of some degree of implant corrosion.”

To show that the body’s response to materials results in corrosion of stainless steel, specifically 316L, Brooks et al. simulated the effects of of inflammation on the materials degradation. Figure 1 shows corrosion because more ions are in solution from the metal in the inflammatory simulation, done by making solution at a low pH with hydrogen peroxide, than in the normal one.

Figure 1. Concentration of ions released from 316L into the test electrolyte over a 24hr immersion period in both normal and inflammatory test conditions. (Brooks et al. Materials Science and Engineering C. 2017)

BMGs therefore could be an alternative for stainless steel because, it is strong, easy to form and corrosion resistant. The various methods of shaping BMGs including blow molding, casting and thermoplastic forming show how they are processable like a polymeric material and at relatively low temperatures. BMGs are super cooled resulting in an amorphous structure. This amorphous structure means that there are no grain boundaries and the absence of them contributes to the material’s corrosion resistance.