MoM Hip Implants Present Diagnostic Challenges (AAOS 2014 Annual Meeting News)
Tribocorrosion occurring as articular surface loss at metal-on-metal (MoM) junctions in hip implants has emerged as one of the most important clinical problems in orthopaedic surgery. The problem has also attracted considerable media attention focused on complications occurring over time.
During the “Metal on Metal and Modular Corrosion: Clinical Impact of Tribocorrosion” symposium Wednesday, panelists surveyed the pressing issues under investigation, including diagnostic modalities and treatment options for patients who may have adverse local tissue reactions (ALTRs) to metal debris.
Retrieving valuable information
Alister Hart, FRCS, of Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in London, first reviewed what retrieval studies, involving 5,000 components from 22 countries, reveal about implant complications. He described such forensic analysis as akin to study of the black box from an airplane after a crash, providing clues to questions such as: What is the human wear rate? What surgical, design, and patient factors influence wear rate? How does the wear occur?
Hip simulation and imaging findings can then gui...
