I’ve mentioned metal on metal hips a few times in past posts, and as many people are aware, there has been a great deal of concern about the long term effects of this type of hip. While I am convinced that only a few of these designs are a problem, it’s important to understand the benefits and if there are any other ways to achieve the same results. Recently, we have had great success using a dual pivot design for hip replacement. This design provides all the benefits of metal on metal - the large head and wear resistance - without an actual metal on metal surface. The dual pivot design employs a smaller ceramic head, embedded into a large plastic head that is placed into the same socket we used for metal on metal. The plastic is very thick and wear resistant and the dual pivoting surfaces should result in less wear over time.
For younger patients who have concerns about metal on metal and need the range of motion and durability, I think this represents a great option.

Tags: Hip Replacement, Hip

Many of my patients have been asking about concerns related to metal on metal hip implants. While we have had tremendous success with metal on metal, but the feature that I feel is the most beneficial is the large ball and socket that make dislocations less likely. Metal on metal also has less wear than traditional plastic. However, during the last ten years, plastic technology has caught up in many respects. We are now able to use cross linking techniques to make the plastic stronger and use vitamin E to prevent the plastic from getting brittle while it is cross linked. I am happy to report that we have ePoly available for both hip and knee replacement . It should provide us all the benefits of metal on metal without the worry about metal ion generation. While we can never promise, I think we are getting closer to lifetime joint replacements with each new innovation.

Tags: Total knee, Total hip