An in vitro investigation of diamond-like carbon as a femoral head coating.
Wear of polyethylene acetabular components of hip implants is a significant clinical problem. In prosthetic hip surgery, polyethylene wear is identified as a factor that limits the life of the implant; it is known that the production of debris can cause adverse tissue reactions that may lead to extensive bone loss around the implant, and consequently loosening of the fixation. A new class of so-called Diamond-Like Carbon coatings, applied to titanium femoral heads was compared to ceramic and metallic heads in terms of wear behavior against UHMWPE using a hip joint simulator with a bovine calf serum lubricant. A thin film of Diamond-Like Carbon was deposited directly onto titanium (Ti6Al4V) head using chemical vapor deposition. The wear of polyethylene coupled with Diamond-Like Carbon coated femoral heads was comparable to that obtained with the polyethylene coupled with commercial alumina femoral heads.
Affatato
S
S
Laboratorio di Tecnologia Medica, Istituti Ortopedici Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy. affatato@tecno.ior.it
Frigo
M
M
Toni
A
A
D000497:Alloys; D000818:Animals; D019643:Arthroplasty, Replacement; D002244:Carbon; D002417:Cattle; D005270:Femur Head
D000497:Alloys; D002244:Carbon