Patterned Microtexture for Improved Durability of Orthopedic Knee Implants

描述（由申请人提供）：在美国，每年大约有60万例全膝关节置换术（TKR）手术，每年的总费用为150亿美元，目前有近450万美国人生活在TKR植入物中。由于机械磨损，TKR装置在使用10年后的存活率急剧下降。这个STTR项目的目标是通过修改tkr来提高润滑滑液的性能，从而从根本上提高tkr的耐久性。目前对抗种植体磨损的范例是通过使用超光滑的滑动表面来减少摩擦。相比之下，我们的方法将为植入物的股骨部件增加一种表面纹理，用于在低滑动速度下产生流体动力润滑。新获得的超短脉冲激光器将用于在CoCr股骨组件上以微米级凹陷阵列的形式创建设计的纹理。激光将以一种不会对韧窝之间的表面粗糙度产生不利影响的方式实现这一目标，或者材料本身优异的磨损性能。这个第一阶段的项目将验证这样一个假设，即具有纹理的表面可以在真实的膝关节滑动速度下产生完全的流体润滑，以减少最终导致植入物失效的摩擦和磨损。这项研究有可能改变目前关于种植体承载表面的范式。这一知识可以产生新一代的完全不同的，更持久的骨科植入物。用于修改植入物的激光纹理方法是一种已建立的工业过程，价格合理，并且将允许润滑增强技术的近期过渡，以造福患者并节省医疗保健系统的总体费用。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Each year in the US, approximately 600,000 total knee replacement (TKR) surgeries are performed at a total annual cost of $15B and nearly 4.5M Americans are currently living with a TKR implant. The survival rate of TKR devices declines dramatically after ten years of use due primarily to mechanical wear. The objective of this STTR project is radically improve the durability of TKRs by modifying them to enhance the performance of the lubricating synovial fluid. The current paradigm for combating implant wear is to minimize friction by employing ultra-smooth sliding surfaces. In contrast, our approach will add to the implant's femoral component a surface texture that is designed to create hydrodynamic lubrication at low sliding velocities. Newly available ultra short pulse lasers will b used to create the designed texture on a CoCr femoral component in the form of arrays of micron-scale dimples. The lasers will achieve this in a manner that does not adversely affect the surface roughness between dimples, or the intrinsically excellent wear properties of the material. This Phase 1 project will verify the hypothesis that a surface so textured can generate full fluid lubrication at realistic knee joint sliding velocities to reduce friction and wear that eventually lead to implant failure. This research has the potential to shift current paradigms about implant bearing surfaces. This knowledge could produce a new generation of radically different, longer-lasting orthopedic implants. The method laser texturing method for modifying the implants is an established industrial process that is affordable and will allow near term transition of the lubrication enhancement technology for the benefit of patients and overall savings to the health care system.