Joint Graduate Program in Bioengineering
University of California, Berkeley
University of California, San Francisco
Total joint replacement is a common surgical procedure for patients suffering from pain and loss of mobility due to joint injury, arthritis, and other diseases, and it is becoming increasingly common for younger, more active patients. However, total hip replacements often last only 15-20 years, which means that many patients can be expected to outlive their implants and require painful, difficult revision surgery. The primary reason for revision surgery for total hips is wear-mediated osteolysis, a process of progressive bone loss caused by the body’s immune response to wear particles from the implant, primarily from the ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) acetabular cup. The goal of this project is to improve lubrication at the interface between the femoral head and the acetabular cup by adding a hydrophilic polymer layer onto the UHMWPE surface. The hydrophilic polymer layer is expected to retain synovial fluid at the articulating surface, moving the system away from boundary lubrication and closer to full fluid film lubrication, and decreasing wear particle formation.