Porous AW Glass Ceramic as a Femoral Intramedullary Plug

摘要

To improve a survival rate of total hip artyroplasty (THA), modern cement techniques have been advanced. An essential prerequisite to this procedure is adequete plugging of the distal femoral canal. Various methods for plugging the canal have been repoted, such as, doughly aclylic cement, bone plug, and manufactured plugs of polyethylene, biodegradable copolymer, and hydroxyapatite. We generally use cancellous bone chips obtained from resected femoral head in primary THA. However, in the cases of revision surgery, porous AW-glass ceramic (AW-GC) has been used. The purpose of this study was to evaluate efficacy and biocompatibility of porous AW-GC as an intramedullary plug in canine THA for up to 24 months. Porous A-W GC rods (70 percent porosity, 200 mu m mean pore size) were prepared. 20 adult beagle dogs underwent unilateral THAs and 4 dogs were sacrificed at 1, 3, 6, 12, and 24 months after implantation, respectively. Roentgenographic evaluation showed the efficacy of porous AW-GC as an intramedullary plug. Histological evaluation showed osteoconduction at 1 month and resorption of porous AW-GC which was replaced by newly formed bone at 24 months. On the basis of the present study, porous AW-GC can be used as an intramedullary plug in human THA.