Submit to Lubricants Review for Lubricants Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser

Tribological Performance of Artificial Joints 2017

Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Published Papers

A special issue of Lubricants (ISSN 2075-4442).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2017) | Viewed by 13469

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editors

Mr. Robert Sonntag

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Laboratory of Biomechanics and Implant Research, Heidelberg University Hospital, Schlierbacher Landstrasse 200a, 69118 Heidelberg, Germany
Interests: arthroplasty; biotribology; friction; joint simulation; RSA; implant fatigue

Dr. Alexander C. Paulus

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University Hospital of Munich (LMU), Campus Großhadern, Marchioninistr. 15, D-81377 Munich, Germany
Interests: UHWMPE wear; metal wear; pseudotumors; retrieval analysis; hip and knee arthroplasty

Prof. Dr. J. Philippe Kretzer

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Laboratory of Biomechanics and Implant Research, Clinic for Orthopedics and Trauma Surgery, Heidelberg University Hospital, Schlierbacher Landstrasse 200a, 69118 Heidelberg, Germany
Interests: tribology of joint replacement; biomechanics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue came as the natural consequence of the great success of the previous Special Issue “Tribological Performance of Artificial Joints”.

Joint replacement is a very successful medical treatment. However, the survivorship of these implants is limited and the loss of materials in the form of particles or ions, due to the relative motion between the orthopaedic implants’ articulating surfaces and the consequent tissue and immune response to these wear products, remain one of the key factors of their failure.

Tribology has been defined as the science and technology of interacting surfaces in relative motion and all related wear products (e.g., particles, ions, etc.).

Over the last few decades, in an attempt to understand and improve joint replacement technology, the tribological performance of several material combinations have been studied experimentally and assessed clinically. In addition, research has focused on the biological effects and long term consequences of wear products.

Improvements have been made in manufacturing processes, precision engineering capabilities, device designs and materials properties in order to minimize wear and friction and maximize component longevity in vivo.

This special issue will investigate the in vivo and in vitro performance of the orthopaedic implants and their advanced bearings. Contributions are solicited from the researchers working in the field of biotribology and bioengineering.

Mr. Robert Sonntag
Dr. Alexander Paulus
Prof. Dr. J. Philippe Kretzer
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Lubricants is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

friction
wear
joint replacement
arthroplasty
orthopaedic implant
immune response

Published Papers (3 papers)

Download All Papers

Research

Jump to: Review

4145 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Albumin Protein Cleavage Affects the Wear and Friction of Ultra-High Molecular Weight Polyethylene

by Yasha Dwivedi, Michel P. Laurent, Shravan Sarvepalli, Thomas M. Schmid and Markus A. Wimmer

Lubricants 2017, 5(3), 33; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants5030033 - 17 Aug 2017

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 4149

Abstract

It is well established that the total protein concentration and albumin-to-globulin ratio influence the wear of ultra-high molecular polyethylene (UHMWPE, “polyethylene”) in joint prostheses. A factor on wear not yet studied, but of possible clinical relevance, is protein cleavage. Such cleavage is expected in the presence of an inflammatory response and as a result of wear processes at the articular interface. The aim of this study was to compare the tribological behavior of polyethylene articulated against an orthopedic wrought CoCrMo alloy for three lubricants: cleaved albumin, uncleaved albumin, and newborn calf serum (control). We hypothesized that the cleavage of albumin will increase the friction and wear rate of polyethylene, with a concomitant roughening of the polymer surface and the generation of larger wear debris particles. Cleavage of the bovine albumin into five fragments was performed by digestion with cyanogen bromide. In pin-on-flat (POF) wear tests of polyethylene pins made of Ticona GUR^® 1020/1050 against CoCrMo alloy discs, the cleaved albumin led to the lowest polyethylene wear and highest friction coefficients, whereas albumin led to the highest wear rates. In knee simulator tests, the albumin lubricant also led to a 2.7-fold increase in the tibial insert wear rate compared to the regular bovine serum lubricant (a wear rate for the cleaved albumin could not be obtained). The generated polyethylene wear particles were of increasing size and fibrillar shape in going from serum to albumin to cleaved albumin, although only the shape achieved statistical significance. Unlike bovine serum, cleaved albumin led to wear scars for both the POF and simulator wear tests that closely emulated the morphological features observed on explanted polyethylene tibial inserts from total knee replacements. We posit that the smaller protein fragments can more efficiently adsorb on the surfaces of both the polyethylene and the metal, thus offering protection against wear, while at the same time leading to an increase in friction, particle size, and particle elongation, as the protein fragment films interact adhesively during sliding. The results of this study have implications for pre-clinical wear testing methodology as they suggest that albumin concentration may be more pertinent than total protein concentration for wear testing polyethylene. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tribological Performance of Artificial Joints 2017)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

1591 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Conventional and Highly Crosslinked Polyethylene in Total Knee Arthroplasty—A Design-Independent Wear Investigation

by Alexander C. Paulus, Matthias Woicinzski, Volkmar Jansson and Sandra Utzschneider

Lubricants 2017, 5(3), 25; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants5030025 - 16 Jul 2017

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3972

Abstract

Introduction: Improvement of total knee arthroplasty (TKA) materials is one promising approach for extending the lifetime of endoprostheses. The target of this study was to evaluate the sufficiency of TKA-design-independent rolling–sliding screening tests. Additionally, this study attempted to assess the relevance of the design of TKA systems for wear performance by comparison with a simulator study. Materials and Methods: A TKA-design-independent rolling–sliding testing machine was employed at ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) 14243-near conditions and physiologic level unidirectional rolling–sliding. Contact surfaces were generalized into elementary forms at curvatures of real endoprostheses: CoCr-cylinders on flat UHMWPE (ultra-high-molecular-weight-polyethylene) cuboids. Materials varied in resin and crosslinking. One conventional UHMWPE and three highly crosslinked polyethylenes were charged with an axial load of 2.5 kN for 5 million cycles. Wear was determined gravimetrically and the ranking was compared to a simulator study. Results: No statistically significant differences between either material were found. This was inconsistent with the results of a simulator survey. Conclusions: The results of the study indicate that this type of screening test is not able to correctly rank UHMWPE for use in TKA systems. The use of a UHMWPE plate in the test setup with a rolling–sliding cylinder is capable of producing visible wear marks in the bearing area, but the setup followed by a gravimetric measurement does not show reliable results. As the tested materials did not significantly vary in wear performance, it can be concluded that for differences in TKA wear-production, the design of TKR-systems can matter. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tribological Performance of Artificial Joints 2017)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

4249 KiB

Open AccessReview

Current Insights Regarding Metal-on-Metal Bearings for Hip Arthroplasty

by Catherine Van Der Straeten

Lubricants 2017, 5(3), 37; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants5030037 - 11 Sep 2017

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4801

Abstract

Modern small diameter metal-on-metal (MoM) bearings for total hip arthroplasty (THA) have been developed in the nineteen-eighties to address the problem of polyethylene wear related osteolysis. Subsequently large diameter MoM hip resurfacings (HRA) were designed for young and active patients to preserve bone and avoid dislocation. Large diameter MoM THA were originally meant as an easy femoral component-only revision solution for femoral neck fractures in HRA, but were then advocated for primary THA as well. In the last decade however, increasing numbers of revisions for adverse local tissues reactions (ALTR) to metal debris have been reported. These ALTR are due to excessive wear of the MoM bearings, usually related to malpositioning of the components leading to edge loading, or in rare cases to metal sensitivity. Besides the immunological reactions, metal particles and ions have a potential local and systemic toxicity. Wear and tribocorrosion at the taper-trunnion connections of MoM THA but also THA with polyethylene and ceramic bearings have also been recognized as a cause of ALTR with extensive tissue destruction. Despite the fact that the long-term survivorship and functional results of certain MoM HRA are excellent and better than THA in the young and active patients group, MoM bearings have become very unpopular and are likely to be replaced by bearing couples of other materials. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tribological Performance of Artificial Joints 2017)

► Show Figures