Improved design of cementless hip stems using two-dimensional functionally graded materials

Increasingly, it is acknowledged that bone resorption around cementless hip implants may cause future problems. The solution is frequently sought in reducing implant stiffness. However, this confronts the designer with a true design conflict: how to reduce the stiffness without excessively loading the proximal bone/prosthesis interface? The aim of this work is to improve the design of cementless hip stem material, using two-dimensional (2D) functionally graded material (FGM) concept in order to solve the above problems. Two models were used in this analysis, using three materials with different elastic moduli, E(1), E(2), and E(3). In model I, the elastic moduli E(1) and E(2) gradually change along the upper stem surface, while E(3) is maintained constant along all the lower surface of the stem. However, in model II, the elastic moduli E(1) and E(2) gradually change along the lower stem surface, while E(3) is maintained constant all along the upper stem surface. It is found that the recommended model is model I, which has three distinct materials of hydroxyapatite, Bioglass, and collagen. The recommended design of 2D FGM is expected to reduce the stress shielding by 91% and 12%, respectively, compared with titanium stem and model II of FGM. It is found that this new design reduces the maximum interface shear stress at the lateral and medial sides of the femur by about 50%, compared with titanium stem. Furthermore, the maximum interface shear stress is reduced by about 17% and 11% at the lateral and medial sides of the femur, respectively, compared with that of model II of FGM.