Osseointegration of a hydroxyapatite-coated multilayered mesh stem

A new type of porous coating for hip prostheses called “multilayered mesh” was tested under weight-bearing conditions. The surface of the stem is constructed of titanium mesh produced by etching. The hip stems of hydroxyapatite (HA)-coated multilayered mesh and conventional beads were implanted into canine right hips, and animals were killed 3, 6 and 10 weeks and 6 and 12 months after implantation. Shear strength between the implant and the bone was evaluated by the push-out test. Bone ingrowth was calculated from backscattered electron imaging-scanning electron microscopy (BEI-SEM) images of transverse sections. Toluidine blue stained sections and the BEI-SEM images were evaluated histologically. The break sites of the specimens after the push-out test were evaluated on BEI-SEM images of longitudinal sections. The mean push-out strength of the HA-coated multilayered mesh samples was greater than that of the beads-coated samples every time tested, and the HA-coated multilayered mesh implants had significantly stronger push-out strength at 3 and 6 weeks ( p