March 13, 2012

expert reaction to “Failure rates of stemmed metal-on-metal hip replacements: analysis of data from the National Joint Registry of England and Wales”

The Lancet published a study that showed the failure rate of metal hip implants was higher than those of other types.

Prof Cyrus Cooper, Director of the MRC Lifecourse epidemiology unit at the University of Southampton, said:

“This excellent study adds to the growing evidence that failure rates are higher with some of the metal-on-metal implants which were utilised heavily in the period prior to 2010. They also point to the importance of appropriate regulatory scrutiny of orthopaedic and other surgical devices prior to approval, using carefully conducted randomised controlled trials. Finally, they emphasise the importance of adjunctive medical measures to improve implant success, and delay late-phase loosening.”

‘Failure rates of stemmed metal-on-metal hip replacements: analysis of data from the National Joint Registry of England and Wales’ by Alison J Smith et al., published in The Lancet on Tuesday 13th March 2012.