The body reacts to an implant as a foreign object and sets up a mild inflammatory response causing the patient to feel unwell. Such a reaction may also limit the implant's function or lifespan. In addition, the community costs in terms of rehabilitation, earnings and need for support are considerable. The prospect of plastics that are more compatible to the human body could lead to longer lasting implants and speed up wound healing. Although, like new medicines, these plastics will require rigorous testing before they can be used to make surgical implants.
Prosthetic heart valves and shunts to remove fluid from the brain are also more common.
One of the biggest problems with the plastics used in these devices is that bacteria find it easy to grow on them.