A tribological study of a series of retrieved accord knee explants

A tribological study of a series of 27 retrieved Accord meniscal bearing knee joints has been carried out. The roughness of the articulating surfaces of the meniscal and the femoral components was investigated, and the penetration into the polyethylene meniscal component was determined. There was generally little damage to the highly polished metallic femoral components. A general polishing and smoothing of the ultra high molecular weight polyethylene meniscal components was observed, although there was some subsequent deterioration of the polyethylene surfaces in certain cases. The penetration rate of the femoral components into the menisci was low, and was found to be similar to that reported for other meniscal knee joints.