Bone ingrowth and wear debris in well-fixed cementless porous-coated tibial components removed from patients.

Bone ingrowth and the distribution of wear debris within the porous coating of 13 primary cementless porous-coated tibial components removed for reasons unrelated to fixation or infection were quantitatively described. The average length of implantation was 15.3 months (range, 3-30 months). The implants were all of the same design, made for Ti6A14V with a commercially pure titanium fiber-metal porous coating, which covered the undersurface of the tray and the four fixation pegs. In all but one component, supplemental screw fixation was used. The average extent of bone ingrowth within the tray was 27.1 +/- 16.1%, and the average volume fraction was 9.5 +/- 7.5%. There was significantly more bone ingrowth within the fixation pegs than within the tray and also more bone ingrowth in the anterior half of the tray than posteriorly. There was no correlation between the amount of bone ingrowth and the length of implantation, age, or sex of the patient; however, the depth and orientation of the resection plane were found to correlate with the topographic distribution of bone ingrowth. Particulate debris appeared to gain access to the interface via soft tissue pathways both at the periphery and through the holes for adjuvant screw fixation.