Investigating the effect of remodelling signal type on the finite element based predictions of bone remodelling around the thrust plate prosthesis: A patient-specific comparison

Abstract

The resorption of bone in the human femur following total hip arthroplasty is recognized to be related to the loading in the bone surrounding the prosthesis. However, the precise nature of the mechanical signal that influences the biological remodelling activity of the bone is not completely understood. In this study, a validated finite element modelling methodology was combined with a numerical algorithm to simulate the biological changes over time. This was used to produce bone remodelling predictions for an implanted thrust plate prosthesis (Centerpulse Orthopedics Limited) in a patient specific bone model. The analysis was then repeated using different mechanical signals to drive the remodelling algorithm. The results of these simulations were then compared to the patient-specific clinical data, to distinguish which of the candidate signals produced predictions consistent with the clinical evidence. Good agreement was found for a range of strain energy based signals and also deviatoric remodelling signals. The results, however, did not support the use of compressive dilatational strain as a candidate remodelling signal.

Prediction of mandibular bone remodelling induced by fixed partial dentures

“…It is noted that these remodelling parameters were still subjective to the patient-specific data taken and may vary in different cases. The remodelling algorithm adopted in this study is based on that derived from long bone studies (Beaupre et al, 1990;Carter, 1987;Schmitz et al, 2004;Taylor et al, 2004), which is considered to align well with the biological remodelling mechanism. Although there are a number of limitations in this study, including availability of statistical remodelling data in the dental bones, the remodelling results obtained for mandibular bone here appear sensible after comparing the FE-based BMD with the clinical BMD data in terms of the gray averages.…”

“…2 (Martin, 1984), which quantitatively relates SAD to BMU in bony structure. In recognition of the effect of the surface area on bone remodelling, the remodelling will be proportional to SAD X (Schmitz et al, 2004).…”

“…Primarily, the remodelling rules were established in long bones, while the mandibular remodelling is around sixfold higher than the femoral site (Huja and Beck, 2008;Lin et al, 2010). Hence, the remodelling simulation of mandibular bone was implemented at a greater width and ratio (Schmitz et al, 2004). To determine the mandibular remodelling, a series of simulation tests with different remodelling parameters, e.g.…”

Comparison of different hip prosthesis shapes considering micro-level bone remodeling and stress-shielding criteria using three-dimensional design space topology optimization

“…The method approximates overall bone density and stresses in each element region; however, the macro-sized elements prevent accurate computational modeling of the trabecular architecture. The past decade has seen increased mesh resolution simulations, non-linear material models, and contact analysis to increase realism (Joshi et al, 2000;Weinans et al, 2000;Fernandes et al, 2002;Schmitz et al, 2004Schmitz et al, , 2006Fraldi et al, 2010;Herrera and Panisello, 2009). Nonetheless, the common feature of these analyses is the use of macro-level FEs, which use an average bone density to estimate the cancellous bone strength.…”

Four decades of finite element analysis of orthopaedic devices: Where are we now and what are the opportunities?

“…Since the publication of the first bone remodelling simulations around implants by Huiskes and co-workers (Huiskes, 1988), there have only been incremental developments, for example accounting for overload induced bone loss (Behrens et al, 2009;Scannell and Prendergast, 2009). These tools are still phenomenological descriptions of bone remodelling and different stimuli have been shown to result in similar predictions of adaptation (Schmitz et al, 2004). These simulations are difficult to validate, particularly in humans, due to the ethical problems of collecting pre-operative CT and postoperative DEXA images.…”