Objective There is increasing demand for technology to maintain the mobility of an aging worldwide population. Joint replacement is widely recognized as a successful orthopaedic surgical procedure for treating degenerative musculoskeletal conditions. However, joint replacement prostheses have limited longevity, especially in younger and more active people. Efforts to improve prosthesis longevity and performance continue to drive changes in surgical techniques, prosthesis materials and designs. The broad objective of this proposal is to improve the longevity of joint replacements by expanding our understanding of the biomechanical environment in which prostheses function and wear. The approach is to assess the performance of explanted prostheses after they have endured a finite duration of function in a human physiological environment. Such assessments provide essential inputs for prosthesis development and for validating preclinical methodologies for predicting joint prosthesis performance. However, access to explanted prostheses is limited and few European research groups are participating in such assessments. This proposal (ORTHOWATCH) aims to strengthen the procedures and outcomes of a recently established Register of Orthopaedic Prosthetic Explants (REPO) at the Istituti Ortopedici Rizzoli, a leading European institute for orthopaedics and traumatology. ORTHOWATCH will integrate outcome registers, retrieval analysis programs and preclinical validation methods into a synergistic post-marketing surveillance program for orthopedic devices. The objectives of ORTHOWATCH are: 1) to implement a standardized screening protocol for categorizing explanted prostheses; 2) to apply existing measurement technologies for quantitative assessment of explanted prostheses; and 3) to provide quantitative endpoints from the explanted prostheses that are complementary to the research objectives of a multidisciplinary team of researchers within the host organization. Fields of science medical and health sciencesclinical medicinesurgerysurgical proceduresmedical and health sciencesclinical medicineorthopaedicsmedical and health sciencesmedical biotechnologyimplants Keywords Biomaterial engineering Biomedical engineering Degenerative diseases Orthopaedics Simulation engineering Programme(s) FP7-PEOPLE - Specific programme "People" implementing the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities (2007 to 2013) Topic(s) PEOPLE-2007-4-2.IIF - Marie Curie Action: "International Incoming Fellowships" Call for proposal FP7-PEOPLE-2007-4-2-IIF See other projects for this call Funding Scheme MC-IIF - International Incoming Fellowships (IIF) Coordinator ISTITUTO ORTOPEDICO RIZZOLI EU contribution € 224 254,85 Address VIA DI BARBIANO 1/10 40136 Bologna Italy See on map Region Nord-Est Emilia-Romagna Bologna Activity type Research Organisations Administrative Contact Andrea Rizzi (Dr.) Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Total cost No data