EFFECTS OF LOAD MAGNITUDE AND ORIENTATION ON SEATING MECHANICS IN MODULAR TAPER JUNCTIONS

Statement of PurposeMechanically assisted crevice corrosion of modular tapers continues to be a concern in total joint replacements as studies have reported increases in local tissue reactions1. Two surgical factors that may effect taper seating mechanics are seating load magnitude and orientation.In this study 12/14 modular taper junctions were seated over a range of loads and loading orientations. The goals of this study were to assess the effects of load magnitude and orientation on seating load-displacement mechanics and to correlate these to the pull-off load.MethodsTi6Al4V 12/14 tapers and CoCrMo heads were tested axially at four seating load levels (n=5): 1-, 2-, 4- and 8- kN. Three orientation groups were tested at 4 kN (n=5), 0°, 10° and 20°. The load-displacement behavior during testing was captured using data acquisition methods and two non-contact eddy current sensors fixed to the neck, targeting head-neck relative motion (Micro-Epsilon).Loads were ramped (200 N/s) with a servohydraulic system...