Comprehensive in Vivo and in Vitro Studies for Evaluating the Bone-Bonding Ability of Na2O–CaO–SiO2–B2O3–Ag2O Glasses for Fracture Healing Applications

In the present investigation, Na 2 O–CaO–SiO 2 –B 2 O 3 –Ag 2 O glasses were prepared using the traditional melt-quenching process, with Ag 2 O content progressively raised from 0 to 4 wt.%, at the expense of B 2 O 3 , in the chemical composition of these glasses. The created glasses’ physical, mechanical and electrical characteristics were measured. The bone bonding capacity of the as-prepared specimens was evaluated not only by in vitro studies with treatment in simulated body fluid but also by in vivo studies using the albino rat model at different time intervals up to 28 days. The obtained findings revealed that increasing the Ag 2 O content gradually improved the fracture toughness of the samples by approximately 3.94, 11.84, 27.63, 50%, but fortunately with slight decreases in the microhardness, i.e. 1.02, 2.73, 8.90 and 16.43% and other mechanical properties. All samples had electrical conductivities of 2.36, 2.65, 2.84, 3.59, and 4.23 × 10 ‒5 S/m when the frequency was 1 MHz, compared to 1.36, 1.58, 1.72, 2.10, and 2.42 × 10 ‒4 S/m for the same samples at 20 MHz. Furthermore, the addition of Ag 2 O had a favorable function in improving the bioactivity of the glass samples, as evidenced by in vitro and in vivo data, and no cytotoxicity was seen. Based on these attractive findings, it is possible that the produced glass samples would be suitable for orthopedic applications at load-bearing-sites. Graphical Abstract