Orthopaedic Biologics

Biologics (or Orthobiologics) is one of the most exciting areas in orthopaedic medicine. These products are materials that promote bone and soft tissue healing. As a result, they are utilized in a wide range of surgical and orthopaedic applications including spine, sports medicine, trauma, extremity orthopaedics, revision arthroplasty, maxillofacial, dental, and plastic/reconstructive cases. Most often, these materials are biologically based substances that are naturally found in the body, though synthetic materials may also used.

In the MSC Orthopaedic Biologics Program students will develop a comprehensive understanding of various osteobiologic compounds, which can be differentiated into autograft, allograft, synthetics, and xenografts. Participants will be able to describe the cellular components of each compound, understand the advantages and limitations of each category of compounds, as well as the type of procedures in which they are commonly employed.

Over the course of the program we also discuss the role of mesenchymal stem cells, osteoclasts, osteoblasts, bone morphogenic proteins, and growth factors as they relate to fracture healing and arthrodesis.