EFFECT OF LASER MARKING ON FATIGUE STRENGTH OF ORTHOPAEDIC IMPLANTS

IntroductionLaser marking of implants surfaces is necessary in order to provide traceability during revisions which will help identify product problems more quickly, better execute product recalls and improve patient safety. There are several methods of marking employed within the medical field such as chemical etching, electro pencil marking, mechanical imprinting, casting of markings, marking with vibratory type contact, ink jet, hot foil and screen printing. However, these methods have various drawbacks including marking durability or addition of potentially toxic chemical compounds. As a result laser marking has become the preferred identification process for orthopedic implants. Laser marking is known for its high visual quality, good reproducibility and precision. However there are concerns about the laser marking potential to affect fatigue life of a device. There is a limited number of research papers that studied the effect of laser marking on fatigue life of implants. The objective of the curren...