Investigation of a Passive Sensor Array for Diagnosis of Loosening of Endoprosthetic Implants

Currently, imaging methods are used to diagnose loosening of endoprosthetic implants, but fail to achieve 100% accuracy. In this study, a passive sensor array which is based on the interaction between magnetic oscillators inside the implant and an excitation coil outside the patient was investigated. The excited oscillators produce sound in the audible range, which varies according to the extent of loosening. By performing several experimental tests, the sensor array was optimized to guarantee reproducible and selective excitation of the sound emission. Variation in the distance between the oscillators demonstrated a definite influence on the quality of the generated sound signal. Furthermore, a numerical design analysis using the boundary element method was generated for consideration of the magnetic field and the selectivity of the oscillators during excitation. The numerical simulation of the coil showed the higher selectivity of a coil with a C-shape compared to a cylindrical coil. Based on these investigations, the passive sensor system reveals the potential for detection of implant loosening. Future aims include the further miniaturization of the oscillators and measurements to determine the sensitivity of the proposed sensor system.

[1]  Angelo Cappello,et al.  Intra-operative evaluation of cementless hip implant stability: a prototype device based on vibration analysis. , 2007, Medical engineering & physics.

[2]  L Sennerby,et al.  The application of resonance frequency measurements to study the stability of titanium implants during healing in the rabbit tibia. , 1997, Clinical oral implants research.

[3]  Haw-Ming Huang,et al.  Early detection of implant healing process using resonance frequency analysis. , 2003, Clinical oral implants research.

[4]  P. Herberts,et al.  The Swedish Total Hip Replacement Register , 2002, The Journal of bone and joint surgery. American volume.

[5]  G Van der Perre,et al.  The resonance frequencies and mode shapes of dental implants: Rigid body behaviour versus bending behaviour. A numerical approach. , 2006, Journal of biomechanics.

[6]  J. Ryaby,et al.  Thrombin related peptide TP508 promoted fracture repair in a mouse high energy fracture model , 2009, Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research.

[7]  Gang Qi,et al.  How much can a vibrational diagnostic tool reveal in total hip arthroplasty loosening? , 2003, Clinical biomechanics.

[8]  Lars Sennerby,et al.  Resonance frequency analysis of implants subjected to immediate or early functional occlusal loading. Successful vs. failing implants. , 2004, Clinical oral implants research.

[9]  Alejandro Pozo,et al.  A numerical approach , 2011 .

[10]  T. Brown,et al.  Reliability of detecting prosthesis/cement interface radiolucencies in total hip arthroplasty , 2002, Journal of orthopaedic research : official publication of the Orthopaedic Research Society.

[11]  Hartmut Ewald,et al.  A novel sensor concept for optimization of loosening diagnostics in total hip replacement. , 2011, Journal of biomechanical engineering.

[12]  Ilse Jonkers,et al.  In vivo evaluation of a vibration analysis technique for the per-operative monitoring of the fixation of hip prostheses , 2009, Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research.

[13]  Seong-Kyun Kim,et al.  The relationship between initial implant stability quotient values and bone-to-implant contact ratio in the rabbit tibia , 2011, The journal of advanced prosthodontics.

[14]  L Cristofolini,et al.  Device to measure intra-operatively the primary stability of cementless hip stems. , 2006, Medical engineering & physics.

[15]  J. Berkhof,et al.  Diagnostic accuracy and interobserver variability of plain radiography, subtraction arthrography, nuclear arthrography, and bone scintigraphy in the assessment of aseptic femoral component loosening , 2006, Archives of Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery.

[16]  F. Duck,et al.  Bone vibration measurement using ultrasound: application to detection of hip prosthesis loosening. , 2008, Medical engineering & physics.

[17]  Wolf-Joachim Fischer,et al.  Integration of a wireless lock-in measurement of hip prosthesis vibrations for loosening detection , 2009 .

[18]  G F McCoy,et al.  The Differentiation of Loose and Secure Femoral Implants in Total Hip Replacement Using a Vibrational Technique: An Anatomical and Pilot Clinical Study , 1989, Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. Part H, Journal of engineering in medicine.

[19]  P L Li,et al.  Vibration analysis in the detection of total hip prosthetic loosening. , 1996, Medical engineering & physics.

[20]  Robert Puers,et al.  A telemetry system for the detection of hip prosthesis loosening by vibration analysis , 2000 .

[21]  Hartmut Ewald,et al.  Current Possibilities for Detection of Loosening of Total Hip Replacements and How Intelligent Implants Could Improve Diagnostic Accuracy , 2012 .

[22]  H. S. Wolff,et al.  iRun: Horizontal and Vertical Shape of a Region-Based Graph Compression , 2022, Sensors.

[23]  J. Cuckler.  Unexplained pain after THR: what should i do? , 2010, Orthopedics.

[24]  Christopher R. Bowen,et al.  Sensing methodology for in vivo stability evaluation of total hip and knee arthroplasty , 2010 .

[25]  Sunghuen Kim,et al.  Biomechanical evaluation of dental implants with different surfaces: Removal torque and resonance frequency analysis in rabbits , 2009, The journal of advanced prosthodontics.

[26]  A. Georgiou,et al.  Accurate diagnosis of hip prosthesis loosening using a vibrational technique. , 2001, Clinical biomechanics.

[27]  N Meredith,et al.  Quantitative determination of the stability of the implant-tissue interface using resonance frequency analysis. , 1996, Clinical oral implants research.

[28]  Guirong Liu,et al.  Identifiable range of osseointegration of dental implants through resonance frequency analysis. , 2010, Medical engineering & physics.