Our Research - Joint Replacement and Substitution

Guided by our long-term goals of addressing the biological failure of joint replacements, we have uniquely positioned ourselves to study all aspects of joint replacement function and performance, in terms of wear, lubrication, debris and functional biocompatibility.

Recent achievements include:

• Lubrication analysis for hard bearings and surface replacement hips
• Analysis of wear debris down to 5 nm in size
• Determination of the osteolytic potential of crosslinked polyethylene wear debris in the hip and knee
• Development of novel low wearing ceramic on metal bearings
• Surface engineering solutions for metal on metal hips and wear reduction with rotating platform mobile bearing knees.

Current Research

Led by patient demands and emerging markets in conservative and minimally invasive surgery, current research is focusing on new device solutions, for both hip and knee and other joints such as ankle and spine.

Over 500,000 patients in the UK benefit from artificial hip or knee prostheses.  The long term performance in vivo is determined by the generation of fine micron size wear particles which after about 10 to 20 years cause adverse tissue reactions, bone resorption and loosening.  iMBE is one of the world's leading research groups in the study of tribology of artificial joints, wear debris and its reaction, with over twenty research staff working in the field.  The group has novel joint simulators for studying wear and has developed unique methods for the isolation and characterisation of debris down to 10 nm in size, as well as unique computational models to complement the experimental studies.  The work in the area involves close collaboration with leading orthopaedic implant manufacturers and surgeons.

Studies of the biological activity of wear particles have led to novel in vitro cell models for the analysis of functional biocompatibility of materials for artificial joints.  This work is being developed through biomechanically interactive tissue equivalent cell models, to provide more realistic in vitro simulation of interactive physiological functions.

Follow the link for a list of our current research projects.

Future Research

In terms of our future research, we see the biggest challenge to the orthopaedic industry lies in producing joint replacement with less wear and longer osteolysis free lifetimes.  A range of new materials and designs are now being investigated with the aim of producing engineering solutions with significantly reduced wear particle generation. 

Follow the link for a list of our planned future research projects.