Improved friction and wear performance in polymeric components of orthopaedic bearings.

改善骨科轴承聚合物部件的摩擦和磨损性能。

• 批准号: 5223-2013
• 负责人: Bryant, Tim
• 金额: $ 1.89万
• 依托单位: Queen's University
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2015-01-01 至 2016-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=568390
• 关键词: Improved; friction; wear; performance; polymeric

Nearly 25,000 Canadians and 600,000 worldwide are implanted with an artificial knee each year. These devices are most often designed using specialized components made of metal (cobalt chrome) and plastic (ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene). They are the treatment of choice for severe degenerative joint disease, and they are now being implanted in active patients, some as young as 45. As a result, there is an increased need to improve their durability, particularly with respect to wear in the plastic component. While there have been improvements in the design of polyethylene for use in hips, this has not been the case for highly stressed joints such as the knee. This project examines a novel way of treating the plastic material surface to reduce wear. It is thought that small indentations, or dimples, in the polyethylene surface will entrain joint fluid that will help lubricate the joint and also reduce the stress on the plastic itself. With reduced stress, reduced plastic wear should result. It is reasoned that human cartilage morphology, which has naturally occurring dimples less than 40 micrometers in diameter and 15 micrometers deep, could be used as a model for the surface texture. This geometry will be reproduced on polyethylene surfaces using specialized processing facilities at Queen's and tested to determine if this can reduce friction and wear in laboratory specimens. If successful, the texturing process will be evaluated on artificial joints in a wear simulator that reproduces loads and motion that occur in real life. The aim is to reduce the need to replace worn out artificial knees by improving their durability beyond the 15 years currently expected and provide a growing number of aging adults with a lifetime of activity well past what is now possible.

每年有近2.5万加拿大人和全世界60万人植入人工膝盖。这些设备通常使用由金属（钴铬）和塑料（超高分子量聚乙烯）制成的专用组件设计。它们是严重退行性关节疾病的首选治疗方法，现在正被植入活跃患者体内，有些患者年仅45岁。因此，提高其耐久性的需求增加了，特别是在塑料部件的磨损方面。虽然用于髋关节的聚乙烯的设计已经有所改进，但对于像膝盖这样的高度受力的关节来说，情况还不是这样。