Charnley wear model for validation of hip simulators' ball diameter versus polytetrafluoroethylene and polyethylene wear

Abstract Wear rates of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and polyethylene cups were compared in 9-channel and 12-channel simulators, using serum lubrication and gravimetric techniques for wear assessment. Cobalt-chromium (CoCr) and alumina ceramic femoral heads in 22-42 mm diameter range were used to validate simulator wear rates against clinical data. This was also the first study of three femoral head sizes evaluated concurrently in a simulator (with three replicate specimens) and also the first report in which any wear experiments were repeated. Fluid absorption artefacts were within ± 1 per cent of wear magnitude for PTFE and ± 8 per cent for polyethylene and were corrected for. Wear rates were linear as a function of test duration. Precision within each set of three cups was within ±6 per cent. The wear rates from experiments repeated over 15 months were reproducible to within ± 24 per cent. However, the magnitudes of the simulator wear rates were not clinically accurate, the PTFE wear rates (2843 mm3/106 cycles; 22 mm diameter) were over three times higher than in vivo, the polyethylene 30 to 50 per cent on the low side (23 mm3/106 cycles; 22 mm diameter). Volumetric wear rate increased with respect to size of femoral head and a linearly increasing relationship of 7-8 per cent/mm was evident with respect to femoral head diameter for both PTFE and polyethylene. These data compared well with the clinical data.