throughbone

Throughbone is a term that originated in speculative fiction and hypothetical biomechanics to describe a theoretical method of achieving seamless integration of bone tissue across segmental defects. In this usage, throughbone refers to a continuous, directional channel within a scaffold or host bone that allows cells, blood vessels, and mechanical load to pass from one side to the other without interruption.

Concept and mechanisms described in fiction typically involve a bioengineered scaffold composed of porous, anisotropic materials and bioactive signals that align with the natural trabecular architecture. The throughbone channel would be designed to promote rapid vascular ingrowth and osteogenesis, enabling regeneration of long bone segments and restoration of mechanical integrity after injury.

In practice, there is no widely recognized medical technique called throughbone as of the present. Real-world bone repair relies on approaches such as autografts, allografts, vascularized grafts, distraction osteogenesis, and synthetic scaffolds. Researchers study skull and long-bone regeneration, porous metals, and growth-factor–mediated healing, but the term throughbone is not used in standard clinical nomenclature. The concept echoes elements of existing strategies to create continuous osseous networks, while remaining speculative in current medical literature.

See also: bone graft, osseointegration, scaffolds, tissue engineering, distraction osteogenesis.