RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Metal wear particles: What we know, what we do not know, and why
JF International Journal of Spine Surgery
JO Int J Spine Surg
FD International Society for the Advancement of Spine Surgery
SP 133
OP 142
DO 10.1016/j.esas.2009.11.006
VO 3
IS 4
A1 Fabrizio Billi
A1 Paul Benya
A1 Edward Ebramzadeh
A1 Pat Campbell
A1 Frank Chan
A1 Harry A. McKellop
YR 2009
UL https://www.ijssurgery.com/content/3/4/133.abstract
AB The importance of wear particle characterization for orthopaedic implants has long been established in the hip and knee arthroplasty literature. With the increasing use of motion preservation implants in the spine, the characterization of wear debris, particularly metallic nature, is gaining importance. An accurate morphological analysis of wear particles provides for both a complete characterization of the biocompatibility of the implant material and its wear products, and an in-depth understanding of the wear mechanisms, ion release, and associated corrosive activity related to the wear particles. In this paper, we present an overview of the most commonly-used published protocols for the isolation and characterization of metal wear particles, and highlight the limitations and uncertainties inherent to metal particle analysis.