Effect of implant material properties on the performance of a hip joint replacement.

A composite material implant prosthesis for hip replacement has been developed. The design of the prosthesis substructure was based on investigation of the stress and strain fields that were developed in the human femur at the proximal end when a prosthesis stem had been inserted into it. The prosthesis stem structure was of unidirectional fibrous composite material core (graphite fibres in polysulfone matrix), wrapped with four layers of the same material but orientated at different angles. The orthotropic moduli of the outer layer are very close to the moduli of a human cortical bone in the vertical and circumferential directions. The moduli increased gradually from the outer layer to the inner core. A three-dimensional finite element model of the prosthesis and the bone has been constructed and loaded with the range of forces that might appear upon operation. The behaviour of the composite prosthesis and the femur was then compared with the intact femur and three other types of prosthesis materials, namely stainless steel, titanium, an isoelastic material and a hypothetical one with moduli identical to the cortical bone. The titanium has modulus of elasticity that is only half of the stainless steel. It was found that the composite prosthesis gave the best performance for most of the categories that were examined.