We investigated the lymphocyte-mediated immune response to polymethylmethacrylate bone cement in 26 patients who had revision surgery for aseptic loosening of cemented total hip arthroplasties, at a mean time of seven years after the first replacement. We studied eight patients with cemented total hip arthroplasties which were not loose as controls. Patch tests to polymethylmethacrylate bone cement were positive in 13 patients with loosening, and these patients had higher lymphoblast transformation values against polymethylmethacrylate bone cement patients with a negative skin reaction (p < 0.01) or those in the control group (p < 0.001). Specific monoclonal antibodies were used to assess the percentage of certain cells of the immune system according to their cluster of differentiation (CD). There was a higher number of total T and B lymphocytes (CD2 and CD22) and interleukin-2 receptor-positive lymphocytes (activated cells, CD25) in patients with loose prostheses. More CD25 lymphocytes were found in patients with positive patch tests. The activation of the lymphocyte-mediated immune response was not related to the presence or absence of aggressive granulomatous lesions at the cement-bone interface

Over a 13-year period we studied all patients who underwent major hip and knee surgery and were diagnosed with objectively confirmed symptomatic venous thromboembolism, either deep venous thrombosis or non-fatal pulmonary embolism, within six months after surgery. Low-molecular-weight heparin had been given while the patients were in hospital. There were 5607 patients. The cumulative incidence of symptomatic venous thromboembolism was 2.7% (150 of 5607), of which 1.1% had developed pulmonary embolism, 1.5% had deep venous thrombosis and 0.6% had both. Patients presented with deep venous thrombosis at a median of 24 days and pulmonary embolism at 17 days after surgery for hip fracture. After total hip replacement, deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism occurred at a median of 21 and 34 days respectively. After total knee replacement, the median time to the presentation of deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism was 20 and 12 days respectively. The cumulative risk of venous thromboembolism lasted for up to three months after hip surgery and for one month after total knee replacement. Venous thromboembolism was diagnosed after discharge from hospital in 70% of patients who developed this complication. Despite hospital-based thromboprophylaxis, most cases of clinical venous thromboembolism occur after discharge and at different times according to the operation performed

Clinical experience of the ICLH method of resurfacing the hip now spans 10 years. The first 36 arthroplasties, performed between 1972 and 1974, have been previously reported. This review covers in detail 204 such arthroplasties performed between 1975 and 1979 using a standard operative technique and prosthesis; these hips were consecutive and entirely unselected. Follow-up averaged 3.2 years (range two to six years). Successful hips are comparable to hips successfully replaced with stemmed prostheses. The rates of perioperative complications and failure due to infection, ectopic ossification, fracture of the femoral neck, and dislocation are favourably comparable to rates reported for stemmed total hip arthroplasties. The rate of aseptic loosening (17 per cent) greatly exceeded that found for stemmed total hip arthroplasties. Errors of patient selection, operative technique and prosthetic design have been identified. It is concluded that, although resurfacing arthroplasty of the hip may be an appealing procedure with theoretical advantages in certain instances, patient selection is essential, operative technique is demanding and changes in the design of the prosthesis are required. The procedure is still in evolution and therefore it should not yet be generally employed

We examined radiographic polyethylene wear in 233 cemented total hip arthroplasties (201 patients) with either a metal-backed or a non-metal-backed acetabular cup. All patients had identical cemented one-piece titanium femoral stems with a femoral head diameter of 28 mm. The mean linear wear rate was 0.11 mm/yr in metal-backed sockets and 0.08 mm/yr in non-metal-backed sockets (p = 0.0002). The mean volumetric wear rate was 66.2 mm3/yr in the metal-backed sockets and 48.2 mm3/yr in the polyethylene sockets (p = 0.0002). The addition of metal backing to a cemented acetabular cup therefore resulted in a 37% increase in mean polyethylene wear rates which may partially explain the higher failure rate of cemented metal-backed cups. Linear regression analysis also implicated increased follow-up time (log), gross acetabular migration, metal backing and male gender in increasing polyethylene wear. We advocate the use of an all-polyethylene cup in cemented total hip arthroplasty. The increased polyethylene wear must also cause concern about the wear rate of uncemented metal-backed acetabular sockets

We have evaluated the functional, clinical and radiological outcome of patients with simple and complex acetabular fractures involving the posterior wall, and identified factors associated with an adverse outcome. We reviewed 128 patients treated operatively for a fracture involving the posterior wall of the acetabulum between 1982 and 1999. The Musculoskeletal Functional Assessment and Short-Form 36 scores, the presence of radiological arthritis and complications were assessed as a function of injury, treatment and clinical variables. The patients had profound functional deficits compared with the normal population. Anatomical reduction alone was not sufficient to restore function. The fracture pattern, marginal impaction and residual displacement of > 2 mm were associated with the development of arthritis, which related to poor function and the need for hip replacement. It may be appropriate to consider immediate total hip replacement for patients aged > 50 years with marginal impaction and comminution of the wall, since 7 of 13 (54%) of these required early hip replacement

We reviewed the clinical outcome of arthroscopic femoral osteochondroplasty for cam femoroacetabular impingement performed between August 2005 and March 2009 in a series of 40 patients over 60 years of age. The group comprised 26 men and 14 women with a mean age of 65 years (60 to 82). The mean follow-up was 30 months (12 to 54). The mean modified Harris hip score improved by 19.2 points (95% confidence interval 13.6 to 24.9; p < 0.001) while the mean non-arthritic hip score improved by 15.0 points (95% confidence interval 10.9 to 19.1, p < 0.001). Seven patients underwent total hip replacement after a mean interval of 12 months (6 to 24 months) at a mean age of 63 years (60 to 70). The overall level of satisfaction was high with most patients indicating that they would undergo similar surgery in the future to the contralateral hip, if indicated. No serious complications occurred. Arthroscopic femoral osteochondroplasty performed in selected patients over 60 years of age, who have hip pain and mechanical symptoms resulting from cam femoroacetabular impingement, is beneficial with a minimal risk of complications at a mean follow-up of 30 months

Polyethylene liners of modular acetabular components wear sometimes need to be replaced, despite the metal shell being well fixed. Replacing the liner is a relatively simple procedure, but very little is known of the outcome of revision. We prospectively followed up 1126 Harris-Galante I metal-backed, uncemented components for between nine and 19 years. We found 38 (3.4%) liners of 1126 acetabular components wore and required revision. These revisions were then followed up for a mean of 4.8 years. The rate of dislocation was 28.9%. Nine of the dislocations occurred once and two were recurrent. The overall secondary revision rate was three of 38 total hip replacements (7.9%) at a mean follow-up of 4.8 years. This gives a 92.1% survivorship (35 of 38) at under five years. In isolated revision of a liner, we had a complication rate of 23% (three of 13). In revision of a liner combined with revision of the femoral stem, there was a complication rate of 48% (12 of 25). We discuss possible reasons for the high dislocation rates. Leaving the well-fixed acetabular shell in situ leads to an increased risk of instability. However, this needs to be balanced against the otherwise low complication rate for revision of the liner. Patients should be consented accordingly

We reviewed retrospectively 50 consecutive total hip arthroplasties with proximal femoral replacement prostheses in 49 patients. All the patients had massive bone loss. There were 31 women and 18 men who had undergone a mean of 3.1 hip operations. At the last review, 15 patients had died and two had been lost to follow-up, so that 32 patients (33 hips) were available for assessment. The mean age of the patients at the time of the operation was 60.6 years. The mean length of clinical follow-up was 11.1 +/- 4 years, and mean radiographic follow-up was 7.6 +/- 3.2 years. The average preoperative Harris hip score was 46 +/- 13 points, which improved to 80 +/- 10 points after one year and to 76 +/- 16 points at the latest follow-up. The most frequent complication was dislocation, which occurred in 11 hips. Four femoral components and seven acetabular prostheses were revised because of aseptic loosening. With revision at the end point, survivorship after total hip arthroplasty with a proximal femoral replacement prosthesis was predicted to be 64% at 12 years. Although our preliminary results of hip salvage with a proximal femoral replacement prosthesis were encouraging, a longer follow-up has shown a higher rate of failure

We report the survival, radiological and functional outcomes of a single surgeon series of his first 144 consecutive Birmingham hip resurfacing procedures (130 patients) at a minimum of ten years. There were ten revisions during this time. Although no patients were lost to follow-up some did not complete the scoring assessment or undergo radiological assessment at ten years. The ten-year survival for male patients was 98.0% (95% confidence interval 95.2 to 100). The ten-year survival for the total cohort with aseptic revision as the endpoint was 95.5% (95% confidence interval 91.8 to 99.0) and including revisions for sepsis was 93.5% (95% confidence interval 89.2 to 97.6). The median modified Oxford hip score at ten years was 4.2% (interquartile range 0 to 19) and the median University of California, Los Angeles score was 7.0 (interquartile range 5.0 to 8.0). This study confirms the midterm reports that metal-on-metal hip resurfacing using the Birmingham Hip provides a durable alternative to total hip replacement, particularly in younger male patients wishing to maintain a high level of function, with low risk of revision for at least ten years

During open reduction of an irreducible anterior dislocation of a total hip replacement with an Oxinium femoral head, it was observed that the head had been significantly damaged. Gross and scanning electron microscopic examination revealed cracking, gouging, and delamination of the surface. Because of the risk which this poses for damaging the polyethylene acetabular liner, it is strongly recommended that patients with this type of prosthetic head be carefully monitored after a dislocation

A modular femoral head–neck junction has practical advantages in total hip replacement. Taper fretting and corrosion have so far been an infrequent cause of revision. The role of design and manufacturing variables continues to be debated. Over the past decade several changes in technology and clinical practice might result in an increase in clinically significant taper fretting and corrosion. Those factors include an increased usage of large diameter (36 mm) heads, reduced femoral neck and taper dimensions, greater variability in taper assembly with smaller incision surgery, and higher taper stresses due to increased patient weight and/or physical activity. Additional studies are needed to determine the role of taper assembly compared with design, manufacturing and other implant variables. . Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2013;95-B, Supple A:3–6

Aims

The aims of this study were to compare the mean duration of antibiotic release and the mean zone of inhibition between vancomycin-loaded porous tantalum cylinders and antibiotic-loaded bone cement at intervals, and to evaluate potential intrinsic antimicrobial properties of tantalum in an in vitro medium environment against methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA).

Objectives

We investigated the reliability of the cobalt-chromium (CoCr) synovial joint fluid ratio (JFR) in identifying the presence of a severe aseptic lymphocyte-dominated vasculitis-associated lesion (ALVAL) response and/or suboptimal taper performance (SOTP) following metal-on-metal (MoM) hip arthroplasty. We then examined the possibility that the CoCr JFR may influence the serum partitioning of Co and Cr.

Increasing follow-up identifies the outcome in younger patients who have undergone total hip replacement (THR) and reveals the true potential for survival of the prosthesis. We identified 28 patients (39 THRs) who had undergone cemented Charnley low friction arthroplasty between 1969 and 2001. Their mean age at operation was 17.9 years (12 to 19) and the maximum follow-up was 34 years. Two patients (4 THRs) were lost to follow-up, 13 (16 THRs) were revised at a mean period of 19.1 years (8 to 34) and 13 (19 THRs) continue to attend regular follow-up at a mean of 12.6 years (2.3 to 29). In this surviving group one acetabular component was radiologically loose and all femoral components were secure. In all the patients the diameter of the femoral head was 22.225 mm with Charnley femoral components used in 29 hips and C-stem femoral components in ten. In young patients who require THR the acetabular bone stock is generally a limiting factor for the size of the component. Excellent long-term results can be obtained with a cemented polyethylene acetabular component and a femoral head of small diameter

The management of osteonecrosis of the femoral head ranges from symptomatic therapy to total hip replacement. Conservative treatment is effective only in small, early-stage lesions. Free vascularised fibular grafting has provided more consistently successful results than any other joint-preserving method. It supports the collapsing subchondral plate by primary callus formation, reduces intra-osseous pressure, removes and replaces the necrotic segment, and adds viable cortical bone graft plus fresh cancellous graft, which has osseoinductive and osseoconductive potential. Factors predisposing to success are the aetiology, stage and size of the lesion. Furthermore, it is a hip-salvaging procedure in early pre-collapse stages, and a time-buying one when the femoral head has collapsed