Jessica Shaw '15

Title: Developing a Quantitative Method of Measuring the Femoral Stem Taper Damage of Failed Total Hip Replacements

Goal: To develop a less subjective yet cost-effective
method for measuring the damage on the stem
tapers of failed hip replacements.

Activities & Interests: Theater, ballet, skiing, swag

Abstract: Hip replacement surgery has become much more prevalent over time, and is predicted to increase by 174% to around 572,000 cases by 2030. For this reason, it is vital that the process of hip replacement be improved. Wear of failed hip replacements is currently analyzed by receiving a score from one to four for both fretting and corrosion via the Goldberg scale. Unfortunately, this method is slightly subjective. In this procedure, multiple failed femoral stem joints will be photographed using the same resolution, light source, etc. in order to account for any photographic variables. These photos will then be converted to grayscale and entered into an image processing program. Ultimately, a numerical value will be assigned to these stems to correspond to the severity of wear on the taper surface.