In the past decades, there has been a significant increase in the use of polymers for biomedical applications. The global medical polymer market size was valued at USD 19.92 billion in 2022 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.0% from 2023 to 2030 despite some limitations, such as cost (financial limitation), strength compared to metal plates for bone fracture, design optimization and incorporation of reinforcement. Recently, this increase has been more pronounced due to important advances in synthesis and modification techniques for the design of novel biomaterials and their behavior in vitro and in vivo. Also, modern medicine allows the use of less invasive surgeries and faster surgical sutures. Besides their use in the human body, polymer biomedical materials must have desired physical, chemical, biological, biomechanical, and degradation properties. This review summarizes the use of polymers for biomedical applications, mainly focusing on hard and soft tissues, prosthetic limbs, dental applications, and bone fracture repair. The main properties, gaps, and trends are discussed.
Keywords: biomedical; bone fracture repair; dental applications; polymers; prosthetic limbs; soft and hard tissue.