In vitro evaluation of the acetabular cup primary stability by impact analysis

The implant primary stability of the acetabular cup (AC) is an important parameter for the surgical success of press-fit procedures used for the insertion of cementless hip prostheses. In previous studies by our group (Mathieu, V., Michel, A., Lachaniette, C. H. F., Poignard, A., Hernigou, P., Allain, J., and Haiat, G., 2013, "Variation of the Impact Duration During the in vitro Insertion of Acetabular Cup Implants," Med. Eng. Phys., 35(11), pp. 1558-1563) and (Michel, A., Bosc, R., Mathieu, V., Hernigou, P., and Haiat, G., 2014, "Monitoring the Press-Fit Insertion of an Acetabular Cup by Impact Measurements: Influence of Bone Abrasion," Proc. Inst. Mech. Eng., Part H, 228(10), pp. 1027-1034), the impact momentum and duration were shown to carry information on the press-fit insertion of the AC within bone tissue. The aim of the present study is to relate the impact momentum recorded during the AC insertion to the AC biomechanical primary stability. The experimental protocol consisted in testing 13 bovine bone samples that underwent successively series of 15 reproducible mass falls impacts (5 kg, 5 cm) followed by tangential stability testing. Each bone sample was tested with different hole sizes in order to obtain different stability configurations. The impact momentum and the tangential primary stability reach a maximum value for an interference fit equal to around 1 mm. Moreover, a correlation between the impact momentum and the stability was obtained with all samples and all configuration (R2 = 0.65). The implant primary stability can be assessed through the measurement of the impact force signal analysis. This study opens new paths for the development of a medical device which could be used as a decision support system to assist the surgeon during the insertion of the AC implant.