Background: Advanced biomaterials have become central to modern orthopedic and orthodontic care as clinicians confront complex bone defects, implant failures, infection risks, and the demand for predictable tooth movement. Conventional metallic, ceramic, polymeric, and dental materials often exhibit limited bioactivity, suboptimal osseointegration, stress shielding, or inadequate control of force delivery and bacterial colonization.
Objective: This review synthesizes recent progress in bioactive, biodegradable, nanostructured, and smart biomaterials applied to bone regeneration, orthopedic implantology, and orthodontic alignment, highlighting enabling technologies such as nanotechnology, three-dimensional (3D) printing, tissue engineering, and surface engineering.
Methods: A structured literature synthesis was performed across major databases using targeted search terms related to orthopedic and orthodontic biomaterials, bone regeneration, dental implants, nanobiomaterials, tissue engineering, 3D printing, and smart systems. Peer-reviewed experimental, clinical, and review studies were prioritized, with emphasis on recent publications.
Results: Bioactive ceramics (hydroxyapatite, β-tricalcium phosphate, bioactive glass), biodegradable polymers (PLA, PLGA, PCL), magnesium alloys, polymer–ceramic composites, and nanostructured surfaces improve osteoconductivity, cellular responses, and osseointegration. Surface modifications and antibacterial coatings reduce infection risk. 3D-printed patient-specific implants and scaffolds enable customized porosity and anatomy. In orthodontics, nickel–titanium alloys, ceramic brackets, thermoplastic clear-aligner polymers, and emerging shape-memory and bioactive materials enhance force delivery, aesthetics, and plaque control. Smart, stimuli-responsive, and drug-eluting systems offer spatiotemporal therapeutic control.
Conclusion: Bioactive, nanostructured, and digitally manufactured biomaterials outperform many conventional options in regenerative capacity and personalization. Remaining challenges include long-term safety, degradation control, regulatory pathways, manufacturing reproducibility, and cost. Continued integration of nanotechnology, 4D printing, artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted design, and regenerative strategies is expected to accelerate clinical translation toward personalized orthopedic and orthodontic therapies.