Effects of UHMWPE wear debris generated from total hip and total knee replacements

Abstract

In general, UHMWPE wear particles generated by total knee replacements and total hip replacements are different, with particles from hip prostheses being on the average smaller than particles from knee prostheses. The reason that wear debris from total hip and total knee replacements seem to be different, may be because the predominant wear processes in these total joint replacements are different. Artificial knee joints are typically less conforming than artificial hip joints. Studies of the surface of retrieved UHMWPE acetabular cups and tibial liners and of the wear debris produced by these components in vivo suggest that adhesion and abrasion are the predominant wear mechanisms in hips, although fatigue wear, subsurface delamination, and pitting are more prevalent in tibial liners.