British scientists are working on a new type of prosthetic material that could allow you grow your own hip, in the event that the one your mother gave you no longer works. This technology could be available within the next 10 years. Patient implants would be made from a revolutionary type of plastic material which would stimulate new bone to grow, and after bone growth, the plastic would degrade. This is a big step up from the usual metal and ceramic hip replacements, and the patient would be left with real  new bone growth instead of metal bolts and plates.

Professor Mark Bradley, a chemist at Edinburgh University and other scientists from the University of Southampton have joined together to create this artificial bone material. The Professor explained that as stem cells attached to this artificial material, they would morph into bone cells. Professor Bradley explained,

The idea is that you would shape a replacement hip to what was wanted, put it in position, and wait. Over time the cells would recruit on to the scaffold (artificial plastic material), which would itself start to degrade. The good bone formed would take its place.

The development of this prosthetic material has been underway for the past seven years, and the purpose of this project, “was to create a type of artificial bone which could help heal shattered or worn out limbs.”

Though this exciting development is still in its early years and has only been tested on mice, the next will be sheep. After that, it’s human science fiction made real.

[Source: The Telegraph]