Heightened Ways in Solving the Metal-on-Metal Hip Implant Problems

As stated in news reports, concerns on the health effects of metal-on-metal hip implants sprang when the device poses patient to danger. More than a few orthopedic agencies have taken action on this matter. It was written in news write-ups that the US House of Representatives have requested an investigation on metal-on-metal hip replacements.

Metal-on-metal (MoM) hip implants were no longer put to use in 1970 when a more advanced design was introduced into the market. However, the metal-on-polyethylene design led to component loosening, making the MoM the implant of choice once again. The device had several complaints from users claiming that the device caused them harm.

The US Food and Drug Administration ordered the device manufacturers to do postmarket surveillance studies on their MoM hip system, on May 6, 2011. As an added measure, plans for rectifications on the process of classifying all-metal hip systems are being worked on by the agency. “We have requested and will be reviewing device retrieval analyses from the manufacturers of the hip systems distributed in the US. This will help us understand how and why certain metal-on-metal implants fail over time,” says the FDA in an advisory at its official website.

The US Drug Watchdog, too, has taken action by calling out the affected patients of the failed devices. The US Drug Watchdog is the premier pharmaceutical watchdog in the United States. US consumers’ right to a safety prescription medicine and medical devices is upheld by the group. The US Drug Watchdog was quoted on a recent news report, saying, “There is a huge problem with metal-on-metal artificial hip implant devices.” “There is a huge problem with metal-on-metal artificial hip implant devices,” says the US Drug Watchdog as cited on a recent news report.

A US joint registry is actively advocated by the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. Any implant’s functionality will be tracked down closely and the reporting of failure will be made without delay if there is a joint registry, as conceived by the academy. The AJRR is designed to provide surgeons with timely feedback on their performance as well as the long-term function of the device used.

Australia, like the United States, has also responded to this matter. Changes in government policy on marketing of medical devices are being raised by Rohan Hammett, national manager of Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration. He says that per government order, before a device is approved, clinicians will play a bigger role in assessing it first.

In addressing the problem, the device manufacturers have also played their role. DePuy Orthopedics, manufacturer of the ASR XL Acetabular System and the ASR Hip Resurfacing System, has issued a DePuy hip replacement recall in 2010. With the combined efforts of the device makers, orthopedic authorities, surgeons and patients, solution on metal-on-metal problem may soon be at hand.

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