Simple method for quantification of metal-based particles in biopsy samples of patients with long bone implants – Pilot study

The presence of particles fixed in tissue samples due to implant degradation or disintegration plays an important role in post-operative complications. The ability to determine the size, shape, chemical composition and, above all, the number of these particles can be used in many areas of medicine. This study presents a novel, simple metal-based particle detection method using scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectrometer (SEM-EDS). The presence of metal particles in biopsy specimens from long bone nail-fixated implants (10 patients with titanium steel nails and 10 patients with stainless steel nails) was studied. The samples were analysed using automated area analysis based on image binarization and brightness to 255 grayscale. The results were supplemented with histological data and statistically analysed. The method based on the software used was found to be accurate and easy to use and, thus, appears to be very suitable for particle detection in similar samples.