Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 7, 2026
Bioelectric Analyses of an Osseointegrated Intelligent Implant Design System for Amputees
Published on: July 15, 2009
Forearm bone-anchored amputation prosthesis: a case study on the osseointegration
Anders Palmquist1, Tobias Jarmar, Lena Emanuelsson
1Department of Biomaterials, Sahlgrenska Academy at Göteborg University, Göteborg, Sweden. anders.palmquist@biomaterials.gu.se
Background And Purpose:
Bone-anchored titanium implants have been used for anchorage of amputation prostheses for more than one and a half decades. Histo-logical and ultrastructural analyses were performed on a forearm amputation prosthesis after being in use for more than 11 years.
Material, Methods And Results:
The implant was retrieved from the ulnar bone after a fatigue fracture of the titanium implant, and was clinically stable at the time of removal. The histological findings showed a large amount of bone within the threads and a high degree of apposition of mineralized bone to the implant surface. Ultrastructural analysis of thin samples prepared by focused ion-beam microscopy revealed an electron-dense layer at the interface and direct apposition of crystalline hydroxyapatite at the implant surface.
Interpretation:
Our observations in this retrieval study provide a structural correlate to the functional properties and clinical results of amputation prostheses.
