Processing and Properties of Biodegradable Magnesium Microtubes for Using as Vascular Stents: A Brief Review

Magnesium and its alloys have attracted a great deal of attention in the field of biomedical applications, especially biodegradable stents. However, they have not been extensively used because of some inherent limitations such as poor mechanical properties and high corrosion rate. During the last decade, the selected fabrication methods for producing stent precursors is of great importance and can significantly affect the final stent’s properties. In this paper, the progress of fabrication methods and properties of Mg microtubes for using as biodegradable stents are reviewed. The paper will firstly classify the fabrication methods, and then investigate produced microtubes’ properties from the perspective of mechanical, microstructural and biocorrosion properties.