n. the process by which certain materials, such as titanium, may be introduced into living bone without producing a foreign-body reaction. This allows a very tight and strong joint between the two structures. Osseointegration is used, for example, to fix certain types of dental *implants and *bone-anchored hearing aids.
(BAHA) a specialized form of *hearing aid for patients with certain forms of conductive *deafness. A small titanium screw is surgically fixed into the bone of the skull behind the external ear using a process called *osseointegration. Sound energy is passed from a miniature microphone and amplifier to the screw, through the bone, to the *cochlea.... bone-anchored hearing aid
n. 1. a drug (such as a subcutaneous hormone implant), a prosthesis (such as an artificial hip, an intraocular lens implant (see cataract), a *breast implant, a *cochlear implant, or an artificial heart implant: see ventricular assist device), or a radioactive source (such as radium needles) that is put into the body. 2. (in dentistry) a rigid structure that is embedded in bone or under its periosteum to provide support for replacement teeth on a *denture, *crown, or *bridge. Recent types (osseointegrated implants) consist of a number of special titanium alloy inserts (fixtures), placed in the jawbone, onto which abutments are fitted after the bone has healed and fused with the fixture. Later an artificial-tooth superstructure is bolted onto the abutments. Osseointegrated implants are also used to retain facial *prostheses. See also osseointegration.... implant
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