Characterization of wear particles generated from CoCrMo alloy under sliding wear conditions

Biological effects of wear products (particles and metal ions) generated by metal-on-metal (MoM) hip replacements made of CoCrMo alloy remain a major cause of concern. Periprosthetic osteolysis, potential hypersensitivity response and pseudotumour formation are possible reactions that can lead to early revisions. To accurately analyse the biological response to wear particles from MoM implants, the exact nature of these particles needs to be characterized. Most previous studies used energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) analysis for characterization. The present study used energy filtered transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and electron diffraction pattern analysis to allow for a more precise determination of the chemical composition and to gain knowledge of the crystalline structure of the wear particles.