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Abstract
Fine wires and cables play a critical role in the design of medical devices and subsequent treatment of a large array of medical diagnoses. Devices such as guide wires, catheters, pacemakers, stents, staples, functional electrical stimulation systems, eyeglass frames and orthodontic braces can be comprised of wires with diameters ranging from 10s to 100s of micrometres. Reliability is paramount as part of either internal or external treatment modalities. While the incidence of verified fractures in many of these devices is quite low, the criticality of these components requires a strong understanding of the factors controlling the fracture and fatigue behaviour.Citation1,Citation2 Additionally, optimisation of the performance and reliability of these devices necessitates characterisation of the fatigue and fracture properties of its constituent wires. A review of cable architecture and stress states experienced during testing is followed by an overview of the effects of changes in material composition, microstructure, processing and test conditions on fracture and fatigue behaviour of wire and cable systems used in biomedical applications. The review concludes with recommendations for future work.
Acknowledgements
The authors appreciate the work of a number of staff, former students, post-doctoral researchers and visiting scholars that have contributed to our ongoing work in various areas. They include: Chris Tuma, Mostafa Shazly, Ravikumar Varadarajan, Luciano Ovidiu Vatamanu, Dingqiang Li, Josh Caris, Adel B. Shabasy, Hala A. Hassan, Brian Benini, Mark E. Lewandowski, John R. Lewandowski and Hossein Lavvafi. One of the authors (JJL) was introduced to the importance of such work by the CWRU-Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) Group at CWRU under the lead of P. Hunter Peckham, with significant input from various FES Group members including Brian Smith, Fred Montague, Alex Campean, Jim Buckett, Kevin Kilgore and Joe H. Payer. Access to early fatigue work and discussions with Tom Mortimer and Tom Kicher are also appreciated. Work on the various FES-related systems was supported by: NIH-NINDS Grant NS-041809, NIH-NIBIB Grant EB-001740 and NIH-NS074149. Other, more recent support was provided by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR) under the DARPA Hand Proprioception and Touch Interfaces (HAPTIX) program, contract award number N66001-15-C-4014. Illustrations and graphics support were provided courtesy of Cleveland FES Center. Work on Nitinol and some 316LVM work was supported by Ohio Third Frontier under the Nitinol Commercialization Accelerator Laboratory (NCAL) at CWRU in conjunction with Cleveland Clinic, University of Toledo, NASA Glenn Research Center and Norman Noble, Inc. Access to femtosecond laser treatments at Cleveland Clinic via Melissa Young and Dave Dudzinski are much appreciated while mechanical reliability evaluations at CWRU were conducted in the Advanced Manufacturing and Mechanical Reliability Center (AMMRC). Surface analysis and fractography of some 316LVM and Nitinol was performed in the Swagelok Center for Surface Analysis of Materials (SCSAM) at CWRU. Assistance provided by Kelvin Smith Library in preparation of this paper is greatly appreciated. Support for JRL was provided by Tau Beta Pi, Don Richards Fellowship and the Case Alumni Association (CAA) at CWRU. Supply of materials for the various CWRU investigations was provided by Fort Wayne Metals, Inc., NASA Glenn Research Center and the CWRU Dental School. Partial funding for one of the authors (JLG) has been provided by ASTM International Project Grant, Leonard Case Jr., Professorship, Arthur P. Armington Professorship and the AMMRC. Supply of materials by Fort Wayne Metals, Inc. for testing at CWRU is also greatly appreciated.
ORCID
J. L. Gbur http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5919-0422
J. J. Lewandowski http:/orcid.org/0000-0002-3389-2637