PROSTHETICS AND

IMPLANTS
TECHNOLOGY

ENGR. MARYUM ZULFIQAR

IMPLANTS
IMPLAN
TS
• Implants are devices or
tissues that are placed
inside or on the surface
of the body.
• Many implants are
prosthetics, intended
to replace missing parts
Basic
terminologies
• Stiffness: It is the resistance of a
structure to deformation
• Elasticity: It is the ability of a material to
recover its original shape after
deformation.
• Plasticity: The ability of material to be
formed to a new shape without fracture
and retain that shape after load removal.
• Ductility: The ability of solid material is to
be deformed under tensile stress and to
be stretched into a wire without fracture.
It also bestows capacity to be shaped e.g.
Construction of bone plates
Physical Properties
When formulating a standard specification for instrument and an implant , the following
requirements are given due to consideration.
• Material sharpness of cutting instruments
• Corrosion resistance (the ability of a material to withstand contact with ambient natural
factors or those of a particular artificially created atmosphere without degradation or
change in properties.)
• Fatigue resistance (the resistance to crack initiation under cyclic loading)
• Shape and dimensional compatibility
• Tensile, torsional (twisting) and bending properties
• Interchangeability
• Performance and ease of operation
• Sterilization
• Marking and packaging
Testing of Implants
Implants can be tested under following categories:
1) Physical
2) Chemical
3) Structural
4) Biological
Testing of Implants
1. Physical Tests:
• Following points are considered under this category:
a) Appearance:
• Indian Standards Institute [(ISI), the former name of the Bureau of Indian
Standards (BIS)]
• Specification directs that the implants should be free from cracks, draw
marks, pits, burrs and surface contamination.
• They should be polished bright .
b) Weight:
Screws of identical diameter, geometry and length should weigh same,
provided they are of the same alloy.
Testing of Implants
1. Physical Tests:
c) Magnetism:
• The austenitic (primary phase) stainless steel (ISI 316) is
nonmagnetic.
• A magnet is applied to the implant and tested for its magnetism.
Testing of Implants
1. Physical Tests:
d) Hardness :
• It is the ability to resist plastic deformation under
identical load.
• “Rockwell superficial hardness testing” is used to
comply with nondestructive testing and to check even
the small components as well.
• This test involves a load of 30 kg and an indentor of
1/16 inch diameter ball. Two readings are taken and
the mean is calculated.
Testing of Implants
1. Physical Tests:
• Other methods.
“IMPACT TEST” :
• With an elevated standard pendulum, the implant is struck and the energy
absorbed in the fracture is measured.
“ Spark test”:
• Molybdenum has a characteristic spark profile.
• The implant is abraded on a standard grinding wheel, and spark trajectories
are noted for the characteristics.
Testing of Implants
2. Chemical Testing
These are studied under the following heads:
A. Molybdenum detection test
B. Molybdenum percentage estimation
C. Corrosion test.

• ISI 316 steel should contain molybdenum between 2.0% and 3.5%.
Testing of Implants
2. Chemical Testing
A. Molybdenum Detection Test :
• “Mini-Moly Detector” kit consists of an especially developed
electrolyte solution and electrodes with a portable dry cell power
source.
• The test procedure is as follows.
• A drop of the electrolyte is placed on the stainless steel under test, and the
electrodes are placed against the electrolyte solution; to turn pink or rosy
red. If molybdenum is present, the drop will retain its color and if not, the
color will fade rapidly.
Testing of Implants
2. Chemical Testing
B. Molybdenum Percentage Estimation
• This can be carried out by various metal testing laboratories in all major
cities. (e.g. Spectrophotometry: reagents are added, if intensity of reagent
color increase molybdenum percentage is high; X-Ray diffraction: amount of
x-ray absorbed is measured)
C. Corrosion Test (Aqua Regia)
• It contains hydrochloric acid and nitric acid in the proportion of 3:1, and it is
a strong solvent.
• If the implants are of identical alloys, they should dissolve identically. The
percentage loss is estimated and compared with the standard one.
Testing of Implants
3. Structural Characteristics
• These are considered under the following two heads:
1. Design specification
2. Mechanical stability
1. Design Specification:
• ISI has laid down specifications for each implant.
• For example, bone screw can be checked against the following points:
• Angle and diameter of the head
• Slots
• Thread diameter
• Core diameter
• Edge width
• Angle of the thread and pitch
• Angle of the tip.
2. Mechanical Stability:
Geometry of the bone plates with regard to the location of screw holes, thickness and acute
bends are studied and compared with the ISI specifications.
Testing of Implants
4. Biological Compatibility
• ISI has specified methods for testing biological compatibility of
metals for surgical implants.
• Magnetic implants are liable to corrode by reaction in the body and
hence should be rejected.
• In the process of buffing and subsequent cleaning, the magnetic
particles would be wiped away and the implant should become
nonmagnetic
• Regarding mechanical stability, certain biomechanical principles
need to be strictly adhered to.
• They are:
1. Holes in the plates are potential sites of weakness
2. Thicker the plate, more rigid it is
3. Acute angles (less than 90 degree) and sharp bends in the
implants should be avoided
4. One piece implant is better mechanically than joined implant.