LUBRICATION CONDITIONS FOR WEAR SIMULATION IN ARTIFICIAL HIP REPLACEMENTS

摘要

It is essential to evaluate the wear behavior of joint replacement materials and designs. While synovial fluid is the biological joint lubricant, it is present in too small quantities to use for wear simulations. A variety of lubricants have been used, such as water, saline solutions, synovial fluid components (hyaluronic acid, lubricin, and phospholipids), serum and custom-made lubricants. Studies from our Loma Linda University Medical Center lab and others have explored the benefits and deficiencies of these pseudo-synovial fluids. Serum is used extensively as the lubricant because its results most closely match clinical results with polyethylene bearings. Laboratory experiments have explored the effects of serum with differences of proteins (concentration, type, and ratio), volume, viscosity, temperature, and additives and their wear response. The properties of current lubricants, in particular the roles of proteins, are the current focus in the search for an ideal joint analogue fluid.