ABSTRACT
Electrochemical corrosion occurs to some extent on all metallic implants. This is primarily undesirable for two main reasons: (i) the process of degradation may reduce the structural integrity of the implant, and (ii) the release of degradation products may react unfavorably with the host. Metallic implant degradation may result from either electrochemical dissolution or wear, but most commonly occurs through a synergistic combination of the two (1,2). Corrosion processes include both generalized degradation uniformly affecting an entire surface, and localized corrosion affecting either areas of a device relatively shielded from the environment (e.g., crevice corrosion), or seemingly random sites on the surface (e.g., pitting corrosion). Although generally phenomena of the past, these electrochemical and other mechanical processes can and have interacted to cause premature structural failure and accelerated metal release (e.g., stress corrosion cracking, corrosion fatigue, and fretting corrosion). What remains problematic is the prevalence of elevated local and systemic
metal concentrations and particulate corrosion products in peri-implant tissues associated with the corrosion of both past and contemporary metallic implant devices.
