Cartilage-inspired surface textures for improved tribological performance of orthopedic implants

Firuze Soltani-Kordshuli; Dipankar Choudhury; Josue A Goss; Mara Campbell; Evelyn Smith; Steven Sonntag; Isabelle I Niyonshuti; Deborah Okyere; Mark S Smeltzer; Jingyi Chen; Min Zou

doi:10.1016/j.jmbbm.2022.105572

Cartilage-inspired surface textures for improved tribological performance of orthopedic implants

J Mech Behav Biomed Mater. 2023 Feb:138:105572. doi: 10.1016/j.jmbbm.2022.105572. Epub 2022 Nov 17.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 72701, USA; Center for Advanced Surface Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 72701, USA.
² Department of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, 72205, USA.
³ Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 72701, USA.
⁴ Center for Advanced Surface Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 72701, USA; Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 72701, USA.
⁵ Center for Advanced Surface Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 72701, USA; Materials Science and Engineering Program, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 72701, USA.
⁶ Department of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, 72205, USA; Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, 72205, USA.
⁷ Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 72701, USA; Center for Advanced Surface Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 72701, USA. Electronic address: mzou@uark.edu.

PMID: 36435033
DOI: 10.1016/j.jmbbm.2022.105572

Abstract

Joint replacements have become one of the most common orthopedic procedures due to the significant demands of retaining functional mobility. While these procedures are of great value to patients, there are some limitations. Durability is the most important limitation associated with joint replacement that needs to be addressed due to the increasing number of younger patients. Titanium is a commonly used implant material which has high biocompatibility, high strength-to-density ratio, and high corrosion resistance. However, current titanium implants have poor wear resistance which shortens their lifespan. In this study, microscale dimples with four different dimple shapes (circular, triangular, square, and star) of similar sizes to the pores found in natural articular cartilage were fabricated on titanium disks to improve implant lubrication and reduce wear. Biotribology tests were performed on dimpled and non-dimpled titanium disks in a condition similar to that inside of a patient's body. It was shown that dimpling the titanium disks optimized the lubricant film formation and decreased the wear rate significantly while also reducing the coefficient of friction (COF). The star-shaped dimples had the lowest COF and almost no detectable wear after 8 h of testing. To investigate whether dimpling increased bacterial colonization due to increased surface area, and to determine whether any increase could be limited by coating with antibacterial materials, bacterial colonization with Staphylococcus aureus was tested with non-dimpled and star-shaped dimpled titanium disks with and without coating with polydopamine (PDA), silver (Ag) nanoparticles (NPs), and PDA + Ag NPs. It was found that dimpling did not increase bacterial colonization, and that coating with PDA, Ag NPs, or PDA + Ag NPs did not decrease bacterial colonization. Nevertheless, we conclude that star-shaped dimpled titanium surfaces have potential utility as more durable orthopedic implants.

Keywords: Bacterial colonization; Durability; Micro-dimple; Orthopedic implant; Titanium.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

Anti-Bacterial Agents
Coated Materials, Biocompatible
Friction
Humans
Nanoparticles*
Staphylococcus aureus
Surface Properties
Titanium*

Substances

Titanium
Anti-Bacterial Agents
Coated Materials, Biocompatible