Brennan Torstrick

Brennan's project is focused on developing methods to promote the osseointegration of polymer orthopaedic implants. He focuses primarily with PEEK, a polymer that's widely used in spine and sports medicine devices because of its high strength. Though PEEK is frequently seen in the clinic today, it may not integrate as well as other orthopaedic materials (such as titanium). Brennan's project aims to improve the osseointegration of PEEK by introducing a porous region that is just on the implant surface, thereby allowing bone ingrowth and implant fixation while also preserving the strength of the solid PEEK core to bear high loads.