Failure of total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is mainly caused by biological reactions against wear particles generated at the implant. So far, wear has been mainly attributed to polyethylene (PE) and much effort has been put into understanding and optimizing the wear mechanism of PE in recent years. However, evaluation of metal wear particles and ion release in TKR has been neglected so far although the implants present large metal surface areas. In the present study we aimed to analyse the wear performance of TKA and to study the kinetics of metal ion and particle release. We hypnotized that due to abrasion and corrosion TKA will release relevant levels of Cobalt (Co), Chromium (Cr), Molybdenum (Mo) and Titanium (Ti). Implants were subjected to an in-vitro simulation applying physiological loadings and motions for 5 million walking cycles. Wear processes were determined gravimetrically and by measuring the release of Co, Cr, Mo and Ti ions using HR-ICP-MS. Surface alterations were determined through surface roughness measurements.Introduction
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