Shape Memory Polymer Bioglass Composite Scaffolds Designed to Heal Complex Bone Defects

An off-the-shelf scaffold with requisite properties could enable the viable treatment of irregular craniomaxillofacial bone defects. Notably, the scaffold should be conformally fitting, innately bioactive, and bioresorbable. In prior work, we developed a series of shape memory polymer (SMP) scaffolds based on cross-linked poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL). These were capable of "self-fitting" into complex bone defects when exposed to temperatures above the melt transition of the constituent PCL, either