GENERATION OF WEAR PARTICLES FROM LABORATORY-ARTICULATED HUMAN PROSTHETIC JOINTS: TMJ (TEMPOROMANDIBULAR JOINT) IMPLANTS REMOVED AFTER EXCESSIVE PATIENT WEAR

摘要

Polymer-on-metal articulations used as substitute jaw joints generate billions of micrometer-sized foreign-body particles, predominantly from the wear and faceting of the polymeric component. Metal-on-metal implants of the same geometries, harvested from patients experiencing significant pain, show significantly less faceting and lower frictional coefficients during laboratory re-articulations. Interpositional "disc" implants from preserved human umbilical cord tissue may show promise for minimizing joint friction while shifting any wear debris from troublesome synthetic materials to "digestible" tissue fragments.