text: * Nitinol is highly biocompatible and has properties suitable for use in orthopedic implants. Due to nitinol's unique properties it has seen a large demand for use in less invasive medical devices. Nitinol tubing is commonly used in catheters, stents, and superelastic needles.
  * In colorectal surgery, the material is used in devices for reconnecting the intestine after removing the pathogens.
  * Nitinol is used for devices developed by Franz Freudenthal to treat patent ductus arteriosus, blocking a blood vessel that bypasses the lungs and has failed to close after birth in an infant.
  * In dentistry, the material is used in orthodontics for brackets and wires connecting the teeth. Once the SMA wire is placed in the mouth its temperature rises to ambient body temperature. This causes the nitinol to contract back to its original shape, applying a constant force to move the teeth. These SMA wires do not need to be retightened as often as other wires because they can contract as the teeth move unlike conventional stainless steel wires. Additionally, nitinol can be used in endodontics, where nitinol files are used to clean and shape the root canals during the root canal procedure.  Because of the high fatigue tolerance and flexibility of nitinol, it greatly decreases the possibility of an endodontic file breaking inside the tooth during root canal treatment, thus improving safety for the patient.
  * Another significant application of nitinol in medicine is in stents: a collapsed stent can be inserted into an artery or vein, where body temperature warms the stent and the stent returns to its original expanded shape following removal of a constraining sheath; the stent then helps support the artery or vein to improve blood flow. It is also used as a replacement for sutures—nitinol wire can be woven through two structures then allowed to transform into its preformed shape, which should hold the structures in place.
  * Similarly, collapsible structures composed of braided, microscopically-thin nitinol filaments can be used in neurovascular interventions such as stroke thrombolysis, embolization, and intracranial angioplasty.
  * A more recent application of nitinol wire is in female contraception, specifically in intrauterine devices.