Mixed-oxides prosthetic ceramic ball heads. Part 2: effect of the ZrO2 fraction on the wear of ceramic on ceramic joints.

Three different types of mixed-oxides ceramic ball heads have been investigated for their wear behaviour against acetabular cups of the same materials in a hip joint simulator. Mixed-oxides ceramics have been indicated in literature as a promising compromise between strength and wear but no reports are available on the influence of a percentage of zirconia in a ceramic femoral head when sliding against itself. Mixed-oxides ceramic acetabular cups and femoral heads were tested on a simulator apparatus with a sinusoidal load in presence of bovine calf serum. The experimental results did not show any significant difference between the experimental and commercial ceramic material couplings. These results were found to be in accord with those developed in Part 1.