Developing a 3D Printed Solid-Lattice Hip Prosthesis

Total hip replacement surgeries are seeing an increase in demand, but between 10-20% of these patients may require a revision surgery because of a failure or wearing out of the prosthesis. When an implant causes a change in the typical stresses on the surrounding bone, a phenomenon called stress shielding occurs. Stress shielding increases the risk of bone resorption, bone fracture, and revision surgeries. Topology optimization helps medical product designers develop implants that better match the stiffness of healthy bone and improve the comfort and longevity of the prosthesis. In this study, Altair uses simulation to design an optimized solid-lattice hip implant that reduced stress shielding by more than 50%.