Low-friction prosthesis (metal-polymer)
Tribology of hip joint prostheses

From the tribological analysis of the natural synovial joint presented in the previous section, it appears that a joint prosthesis should ideally offer low friction. This principle was first put into practice by English surgeon John Charnley, who in 1962 implanted the first total hip prosthesis consisting of a one-piece femoral part (stem and head in a single piece) in stainless steel and an acetabular cup in ultra-high density polyethylene (UHMWPE)