Head length's impact on taper junction stability in total hip prosthesis

Despite their widespread use in joint deficiencies treatment, hip prostheses still present issues related to the establishment of relative micromotions between coupled components, which can lead to a fretting-corrosion process generating cytotoxic metal debris and ions. It is proven that micromotions at the junction interface are affected by different parameters, such as head diameter, neck length, head length, and taper angle mismatch. In this study, a biomechanical analysis, combining finite elements (FE) and multibody (MB) simulations, was carried out to evaluate the effect of specific geometric features on micromotions and contact pressures generated during walking at the head-neck taper junction of a parametrized hip prosthesis.