Amedica Patents Silicon Nitride Spinal Disc

Amedica Corporation, a spinal and reconstructive medical device manufacturer in Salt Lake City, Utah, has received a patent for a spinal disc implant based on its proprietary silicon nitride (Si3N4) material. Called the Total Disc Implant, it has not yet been cleared by the FDA.

Company officials say the disc implant differs from existing metal-on-metal or metal-on-plastic designs in that it has the potential to provide patients with increased longevity of the implant due to lower wear, better osteointegration and reduced infection rates.

“The purpose of this artificial disc is to increase the likelihood that a patient will have longer lasting neck or back pain relief, ” said Amedica’s Chief Technology Officer Bryan J. McEntire . “Over time existing designs wear and create metal or plastic debris that can cause osteolysis resulting in revisions. By using silicon nitride we can significantly reduce wear rates thus improving the longevity of the pain relief.”

Amedica officials claim theirs to be the only company with the technology to produce FDA-cleared and CE-marked silicon nitride implants for the spinal arena. They believe silicon nitride material demonstrates superior new bone formation and resistance to bacterial infection compared to other products used for spinal fusion such as poly-ether-ether-ketone (PEEK) and titanium (Ti). The company is currently looking to expand silicon nitride beyond spinal fusion for different types of surgical implant devices such as hip and knee replacements, dental implants and suture anchors.