THE INFLUENCE OF TIBIAL PROSTHESIS DESIGN FEATURES ON STRESSES RELATED TO ASEPTIC LOOSENING AND STRESS SHIELDING

Abstract

Aseptic loosening caused by mechanical factors is a recognized failure mode for tibial components of knee prostheses. This parametric study investigated the effects of prosthesis fixation design changes, which included the presence, length and diameter of a central stem, the use of fixation pegs beneath the tray, all-polyethylene versus metal-backed tray, prosthesis material stiffness, and cement mantle thickness. The cancellous bone compressive stresses and bone–cement interfacial shear stresses, plus the reduction of strain energy density in the epiphyseal cancellous bone, an indication of the likelihood of component loosening, and bone resorption secondary to stress shielding, were examined. Design features such as longer stems reduced bone and bone–cement interfacial stresses thus the risk of loosening is potentially minimized, but at the expense of an increased tendency for bone resorption. The conflicting trend suggested that bone quality and fixation stability have to be considered mutually for the optimization of prosthesis designs. By comparing the bone stresses and bone–cement shear stresses to reported fatigue strength, it was noted that fatigue of both the cancellous bone and bone–cement interface could be the driving factor for long-term aseptic loosening for metal-backed tibial trays.