Modelling failure mechanisms in total ankle replacement

Total joint replacement has been a successful surgical intervention for end-stage osteoarthritis for millions of patients globally for several decades. Despite this, clinical outcomes for total ankle replacement (TAR) have been comparatively poor - with up to 20% of implants failing before 10 years. As a result, TAR - an intervention which preserves joint function - has been used less commonly than ankle fusion - an intervention which limits ankle range of motion
This project aims to develop experimental simulation to model the mechanisms for failure of total ankle replacement through morphological and geometrical analysis of failed retrievals - broadening the range of surgeons and device designs from previous studies to ensure device/surgeon-specific failure mechanisms are mitigated. Determination of the envelope of functional conditions likely in a total ankle replacement will be used to model biomechanical function of the device. This will feed into experimental models that replicate the biomechanics of total ankle replacement such that experimental studies are able to generate clinically relevant failure mechanisms.