What causes a hip implant to loosen?

Over time, however, an implant may loosen from the underlying bone, causing the hip to become painful. The cause of loosening is not always clear, but high-impact activities, excessive body weight, and wear of the plastic spacer between the two metal components of the implant are all factors that may contribute.

What is acetabular loosening?

Abstract. Late aseptic loosening of cemented acetabular components is governed by the progressive, three-dimensional resorption of the bone immediately adjacent to the cement mantle. This process begins circumferentially at the intraarticular margin and progresses toward the dome of the implant.

How do you know if your hip implant is loose?

The most common symptom of a loosening hip replacement is the development of increasing pain. This would normally be felt during weight-bearing i.e. walking. Occasionally, the pain may not be persistent but may come on suddenly, particularly with a twisting movement of the leg.

How do they fix loose hip implants?

The procedure is usually performed under general anesthesia. After adequately sterilizing the surgical area, your surgeon will make a small incision on the side of your hip and will meticulously remove all or some parts of the damaged or loosened original hip implant.

How do you stop Aseptics from loosening?

Preventive strategies. The best method of reducing aseptic loosening is to prevent the wear particles being produced in the first place. This can be done by addressing implant design, patient factors and intraoperative surgical factors.

Why is my hip replacement hurting after 7 years?

The hip or knee replacement may become painful after many years because the components have begun to wear and loosen. A fracture. A fall or severe blow can cause a fracture of the bone near the hip or knee replacement.

What is the acetabular component?

The acetabular component is made of a metal shell with a medical grade plastic or metal inner socket liner that acts like a bearing. 2) The femoral component (stem portion) replaces the femoral head. The femoral component is made of metal. The femoral head that attaches to the stem may be a separate part.

What is periprosthetic loosening?

Periprosthetic loosening, either aseptic or induced by periprosthetic joint infection remains a major long term complication and challenge in orthopedics and trauma surgery. According to estimations between 0.4 and 4% of joint replacements will face periprosthetic infection and 2-18 % aseptic loosening [1].

How difficult is hip revision surgery?

Revision hip replacement is a longer, more complex procedure. It requires extensive planning, as well as the use of specialized implants and tools, in order to achieve a good result. (Left) The individual components used in a primary total hip replacement. (Center) The components merged into an implant.

What is the acetabular component of hip replacement made of?

1) The acetabular shell (socket portion) replaces the acetabulum. The acetabular component is made of a metal shell with a medical grade plastic or metal inner socket liner that acts like a bearing. 2) The femoral component (stem portion) replaces the femoral head.

What is an acetabular cup?

Requiring extreme precision, acetabular cups are composed of a titanium or cobalt chrome shell and Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene liner. The shape of these components requires the use of custom fixturing during machining; their thin walls increase the importance of eliminating vibration from the process.

How long does it take to recover from hip revision surgery?

Hip Revision Recovery You will be about 20 percent recovered and should feel comfortable putting more weight on your hip about six to eight weeks after surgery. The timeline for returning to work and other daily activities is usually between 12 to 26 weeks (three to six months).