Experimental Investigation on Fatigue Evaluation of Orthopaedic Locking Compression Plate

Subject Areas : Mechanical Engineering

Saenoddin Mohajerzadeh ¹ , Khalil Farhangdoost ² , Pedram Zamani ³ , Kamal Kolasangiani ⁴

1 - Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
2 - Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
3 - Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
4 - Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran

Received: 2018-06-23 Accepted : 2018-12-17 Published : 2018-12-17

Keywords: Four-Point Bending, Locking Compression Plate, Failure Analysis, Striation Spacing, Fatigue Life,

Abstract :

Locking compression plate (LCP) is a common orthopedic instrument for internal fixation and healing of bone trauma. It is important to study on mechanical behavior and failure investigation of LCP because its failure leads to lots of cost and pain to the patient. In this paper, fatigue life of an eight-hole tibia LCP is evaluated under flexural loading. A four-point bending jig is manufactured and fatigue tests are performed for different compression loads. Fatigue life cycles are investigated for compression loads of 500, 600, 700, 800, 900 and 1000 N and relation between compression load and life cycles is estimated. 125 walking days is estimated for the patient during treatment period according to life cycle results. Post failure analysis results on fracture surface revealed that the crack initiated from the edge of compression hole and propagated from lower to the upper surface of LCP according to beach marks. Finally, Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) on the fracture surface revealed striations as a proof of fatigue crack growth. The striation spacing near the crack initiation site is found to be smaller than this spacing far from the initiation zone. The fatigue crack propagation life is estimated as 1600 cycles according to the number of striation spacings.

References:

[1]     ASTM E1086 Standard, Standard Test Method for Analysis of Austenitic Stainless Steel by Spark Atomic Emission Spectrometry, American Society for Testing and Materials, West Conshohocken, 2014.

[2]     ASTM F382-99 Standard, Standard Specification and Test Method for Metallic Bone Plates, American Society for Testing and Materials, Annual Book of ASTM Standards 13.01, 2003.

[3]     ASTM F621-02 Standard, Standard Specification for Stainless Steel Forgings for Surgical Implants, American Society for Testing and Materials, In Annual Book of ASTM Standard, 2002.

[4]     ASTM F138-03 Standard, Standard Specification for Wrought 18Chromium-14Nickel-2.5Molybdenum Stainless Steel Bar and Wire for Surgical Implants, American Society for Testing and Materials, in Annual Book of ASTM Standards, 2005.

[5]     Gervais, B., Vadeana, A., Raisona, M., and Brochua, M., Failure Analysis of a 316L Stainless Steel Femoral Orthopedic Implant, Case Studies in Engineering Failure Analysis, Vol. 5-6, 2015, pp. 30-38.

[6]     Izaham, R. M. A. R., Abdul Kadir, M. R., Abdul, Rashid, A. H., Golam Hossain, M. D., and Kamarul, T., Finite Element Analysis of Puddu and Tomofix Plate Fixation for Open Wedge High Tibial Osteotomy, Injury, Vol. 43, No. 6, 2012, pp. 898-902.

[7]     Kanchanomai, C., Phiphobmongkol, V., and Muanjan, P., Fatigue Failure of an Orthopedic Implant- A Locking Compression Plate, Engineering Failure Analysis, Vol. 15, No. 5, 2008, pp. 521-530.

[8]     Kim, S., Chang, S., and Jun, H., The Finite Element Analysis of a Fractured Tibia Applied by Composite Bone Plates Considering Contact Conditions and Time Varying Properties of Curing Tissues, Composite Structures, Vol. 92, No. 9, 2010, pp. 2109-2118.

[9]     Marcomini, J. B., Baptista, C. A. R. P., Pascon, J. P., Teixeira, R. L., and Reis, F. P., Investigation of a Fatigue Failure in a Stainless Steel Femoral Plate, Journal of Mechanical Behavior of Biomedical Materials, Vol. 38, 2014, pp. 52-58

[10]  Nassiri M., MacDonald, B., and O’Byrne, J. M., Computational Modeling of Long Bone Fractures Fixed with Locking Plates- How Can the Risk of Implant Failure Be Reduced?, Journal of Orthopaedics, Vol. 10, No. 1, 2013, pp. 9-37.

[11]  Okazaki, Y., Comparison of Fatigue Properties and Fatigue Crack Growth Rates of Various Implantable Metals, Materials, Vol. 5, No. 12, 2012, pp. 2981-3005.

[12]  Sepehri, B., Ashofteh Yazdi, A. R., Rouhi, G. A., and Kashani, M. B., Analysis of the Effect of Mechanical Properties on Stress Induced in Tibia, Proceedings of 5th Kuala Lumpur International Conference on Biomedical Engineering, Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg, 2011, pp. 130-133.

[13]  Sepehri, B., Rameshi, M., Effect of Placement and Material Properties of Tibial Plate on Stress Pattern at Fractured Site. Modares Mechanical Engineering, Vol. 14, No. 11, 2014, pp. 151-165 (In Persian).

[14]  Sepehri, B., Taheri, E. and Ganji, R., Biomechanical Analysis of Diversified Screw Arrangement on 11 Holes Locking Compression Plate Considering Time-Varying Properties of Callus, Biocybernetics Biomedical Engineering, Vol. 34, No. 4, 2014, pp. 220-229.

[15]  Shaat M., Reporting the Fatigue Life of 316L Stainless Steel Locking Compression Plate Implants: The Role of Femoral and Tibial Biomechanics During the Gait, Journal of Biomedical Engineering, Vol. 139, No. 10, 2017, pp. 1-5

[16]  Snow, M., Thompson, G., and Turner, P. G., A Mechanical Comparison of the Locking Compression Plate (LCP) and the Low Contact Dynamic Compression Plate (DCP) in an Osteoporotic Bone Model, Journal of Orthopaedic Traumatology, Vol. 22, No. 2, 2008, pp. 121-125.

[17]  Tsai, S., Fitzpatrick, D. C., Madey, S. M., and Bottlang, M., Dynamic Locking Plates Provide Symmetric Axial Dynamization to Simulate Fracture Healing, Journal of Orthopaedic Research, Vol. 38, No. 8, 2015, pp. 1218-1225

[18]  Uhthoff, H. K., Poitras, P., and Backman, D. S., Internal Plate Fixation of Fractures: Short History and Recent Developments, Journal of Orthopaedic Science, Vol. 11, No. 2, 2006, pp. 118-126.

[19]  Zamani, P., Jaamialahmadi, A., and Shariati, M., Ductile Failure and Safety Optimization of Gas Pipeline, Journal of Solid Mechanics, Vol. 8, No. 4, 2016, pp. 744-755.

[20]  Zhang, J., Ebraheim, N., Li, M., He, X., Schwind, J., Liu, J., and Zhu, L., External Fixation Using Locking Plate in Distal Tibial Fracture: A Finite Element Analysis, European Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery Trauma, Vol. 25, No. 6, 2015, pp. 1099-1104.