Contact: Maridith Geuder
Joel Bumgardner
For most who need hip and knee replacements, the surgical procedure will occur when they're in their 60s or older. The damaged joint is removed and replaced with an artificial counterpart made of materials such as stainless steel, titanium or other alloys.
Joel Bumgardner, Mississippi State University biological engineer, wants to know what the long-term interactions are between the human body and the alloys used for joint and dental implants. He is among professors at 20 U.S. universities receiving 1999 grants from the Virginia-based Whitaker Foundation to research medical problems.
A two-year, $141,000 biomedical engineering research award from the nonprofit foundation will support his project in Mississippi State's department of agricultural and biological engineering.
"For both orthopedic and dental implants, you need strength to support normal activities," Bumgardner explained. "Metal alloys have been popular for implants because they provide strength to withstand up to one-and-a-half times our body weight on our joints."
Many implants are successfully functioning 15 to 20 years after replacement surgery, he said. But over an extended time, the reaction of surrounding cells to the artificial materials may contribute to the implant's loosening and to loss of the device.
He believes that human cells growing on the implant surfaces may alter the materials' properties and affect cells' response to the material.
His project will conduct tests simulating an actual implant situation. To do this, he has designed an electrochemical cell device that can be used in a laboratory setting. With it, he will be able to measure and evaluate cellular-material interactions under clinical-like conditions.
Collaborating on the project are researchers at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, Georgia Institute of Technology and the Medical College of Georgia.
"Our project is a way to expand our knowledge of how the body interacts with biomaterials over time," he said. "Today, we're seeing joint replacement surgeries in some people as young as 30 and 40. This is one step in developing better and longer-lasting implant materials."