Elevating Cranial Surgery to an Art: Quality and Innovation with Bioplate

Since the beginning, Bioplate has led with cutting-edge solutions that have raised the standard of care in neuro- and maxillofacial surgery, helping physicians achieve more positive outcomes than ever before. Over twenty years ago, we entered the market with a product that would come to change the face of cranial fixation as it was then known. Today, the world’s leading surgeons continue to choose Bioplate manufactured and distributed products as their most trusted tool in performing even the most advanced procedures. Our mission has always been to answer the most pressing needs of the field, and it is with this aim we are now expanding our line to include new products with the potential to launch the next generation of fixation solutions.

But what about our products brought them to be considered the gold standard of today? And how do we plan to innovate further?

Quality Materials, Superior Design

At the original release of Bioplate’s products in 1995, titanium cranial plates and screws were still a relatively recent development. Their first use in post-craniotomy reconstruction was recorded in scholarship only four years earlier. Stainless steel wiring was still the unquestioned standard in fixation devices, with suturing considered the best and most advanced method possible. Yet, its superiority was questioned with the introduction of titanium plates and, by our products’ launch, surgeons were beginning to recognize the advantages these new fixtures offered. In the reattachment of bone flaps, titanium miniplates have been found to provide more substantial, more stable fixations that result in far less mobility and a much smaller offset of the bone flap than steel wire suturing. This is aside from the simple fact that titanium is more compatible with the human body, entirely inert for bodily fluids, and impressively resilient.

However, for many physicians, it was Bioplate that truly converted them and transformed their practice. Our products are not only made with the highest quality titanium and titanium alloys available, but they have been painstakingly designed to address some of the most common issues seen with cranial plates. These issues include balancing strength and flexibility to maximize reliability across applications while maintaining as low a profile as possible to reduce visibility and palpability.

These advantages prompted surgeons at the time to credit Bioplate with elevating cranial fixation, and they are what has made us a favorite in the field today. Even though the supply chain issues brought by COVID-19, Bioplate has remained a stalwart, reliable partner, prepared to supply surgeons and help patients no matter the circumstance. We take our role as the sole provider of fixation solutions to some of the world’s best physicians seriously, not only consistently maintaining and improving the quality of our products but ensuring that those products are available to those in need at all times.

The Future of Cranial Fixation

While titanium hardware remains the gold standard in fixation procedures today, it is not enough for Bioplate to provide the best “nuts and bolts”— we are looking to push neuro and maxillofacial surgery to new heights and improve even further on the results that can be achieved for patients. Our latest products, bioresorbable cranial implants, are a testament to this mission.

Offered in collaboration with Osteopore, these implants are polycaprolactone (PCL) devices that, when fitted within craniotomy gaps or into a burr hole, provide a scaffold structure that promotes natural bone regeneration by conducting blood vessel growth over the space. Eventually, these implants fully absorb into the body, leaving behind no foreign materials, putting to rest any concerns of potential future complications; this can be particularly advantageous in, for example, pediatric cases where a typical plate or burr hole cover could present challenges later in development. Further, this eliminates issues with noticeable hardware as the implants are not only 3D printed to exact patient specifications but dissolve entirely in under two years, leaving the patient only with their own bone. As aesthetic concerns are among the most common of complaints, both with burr hole patients and those with titanium plates, these implants have the potential to make vast improvements in long-term satisfaction.

Still, we are far from satisfied with restricting ourselves to cranial fixation. Bioplate is now blazing ahead, further expanding our offerings and looking towards hydrocephalus management and neuro closure as our targets and future areas of expertise. We desire to position Bioplate at the forefront of technology in neuro- and maxillofacial surgery. Our recent relocation has served to place us within reach of the space’s best talent as we endeavor to build a team as high in quality as our products. With the field today ripe for innovation, Bioplate is looking to provide once again the boost it needs to flourish truly.