Posted 29 June 2017 – By Michael Mezher
The UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) on Thursday issued an alert to healthcare professionals with updated recommendations for long-term follow-up for patients with metal-on-metal hip replacements.
Safety and durability concerns about metal-on-metal hip replacements, along with a scandal involving faulty breast implants, were a driving factor in the EU’s decision to overhaul its medical device and in vitro diagnostics regulations.
Previously, MHRA’s recommendations focused on larger metal-on-metal hip replacements (≥36mm) and certain implants made by Johnson & Johnson subsidiary DePuy Synthes, which were thought to be riskier than other types of metal-on-metal hips.
In August 2010, DePuy recalled two models of its ASR hip replacement systems, and in 2013 the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) stopped performing most metal-on-metal hip replacements, citing high failure rates. However, tens of thousands of patients in the UK still have the devices implanted.
