Biofilm control on metallic materials in medical fields from the viewpoint of materials science – from the fundamental aspects to evaluation

Abstract

This review describes biofilms and the need for a materials science/engineering approach to solve the problems in the medical field. In particular, biofilm problems are closely related to infectious diseases. Most chronic diseases and the hospital-acquired infections could be attributed to biofilms. Biofilms usually form on materials. They may be biomaterials such as implants, catheters, stents and others. These films can also form on items outside of the human body. They include beds, service tables, medical knives, needles for injections, etc. Even though materials obviously affect biofilms formation and growth, there have been few studies using the materials science approach. In this review, we summarize the concept of biofilms from the viewpoint of materials science. Topics include the interaction between biofilms and materials (especially metallic materials), evaluation techniques, a bird's-eye analysis of previous investigations, and a discussion about the future direction for developing anti-infectious metallic materials.