Biomaterials have had a major impact on the practice of contemporary medicine and patient care. Growing into a major interdisciplinary effort involving chemists, biologists, engineers, and physicians, biomaterials development has enabled the creation of high-quality devices, implants, and drug carriers with greater biocompatibility and biofunctionality. The fast-paced research and increasing interest in finding new and improved biocompatible or biodegradable polymers has provided a wealth of new information, transforming this edition into a two-volume set. Completely revised and expanded, this state-of-the-art reference presents recent developments in polymeric biomaterials: from their chemical, physical, and structural properties to current applications in the medical and pharmaceutical fields.