Plasma-Assisted Silver Deposition on Titanium Surface: Biocompatibility and Bactericidal Effect

Abstract Dental implants are especially susceptible to bacterial adhesion and so microbial contamination. Several techniques have been explored in order to obtain implant surfaces enriched with silver (Ag). The main challenge is to obtain a bactericidal effect keeping the surface biocompatible. In this regard plasma-assisted deposition is a very attractive technique due to its versatility and low environmental impact. Thus, the present work aimed at evaluating the chemical stability, antibacterial activity, and biocompatibility of a commercially pure titanium (cp-Ti) surface containing very low amounts of plasma-deposited Ag. Ag deposition obtained by 10 minutes sputtering was able to promote antibacterial action (around 30%) on a clearly cytocompatible Ti/Ag surface with no apparent impact on biocompatibility. Taken together these results indicate that the proposed deposition process has a great potential for dental implant application with the advantage of using very small amounts of silver to achieve efficacy.