Comparison of Ossicular Replacement Materials in a Mouse Ear Model

Four biomaterials, UF45S5 Bioglass, Silastic, Plasti-Pore, and Proplast, were used to replace the incus in a mouse ear model. Bioglass, a bioactive glass ceramic, compared favorably with the other test materials in maintaining surgical positioning between malleus and stapes and remaining stable to a blast of nitrogen gas and to pick manipulation. In a short-term animal study, Bioglass showed histocompatibility comparable to that of these other implant materials now used in ossicular replacement surgery in humans.