Age-dependent Wettability Of Surface Treated Titanium

Objective: Wettability of the titanium surface is known to influence the interactions between the implant surface and the surrounding environment. This study was to examine the wettability of newly processed and aged titanium surfaces. Materials and Methods: Titanium plates were prepared with three different surface treatments: smooth, acid-etched, and ultraviolet. Smooth surface was produced by abrasive silicon carbide papers grinding. Acid-etching of titanium was done with 67% sulfuric acid (H2SO4) at 120 ºC for 75 seconds. Ultraviolet light treatment was performed by 15W Germicidal UVC, 254nm, for a period up to 48 hours. Surface morphology and roughness (Ra) were examined in the 3 groups using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and Surtronic 3+, respectively. Titanium samples were placed in a sealed container and stored in a dark room for 0 hour (new) and 2 weeks. Hydrophilicity of the titanium surfaces was measured by the contact angle of 10 µl of distilled water and defibrinated horse blood using an image analyzer (ImageJ, V.1.42q, National Institutes of Health, USA). Results: The newly processed surfaces were hydrophilic with ultraviolet treated surface to be superhydrophilic. However, the aging of titanium was observed for all groups after 2 weeks which turned into hydrophobic surfaces. Wettability of titanium was statistically significantly (p<0.05) degraded by aging in the 3 groups. Conclusion: Age related degradation of titanium surface wettability is substantial as compared to the freshly prepared titanium surfaces, which may be counterproductive for the process of osseointegration.