March 19, 2010
1 min read
Save

New hip implant provides personalized fit

You've successfully added to your alerts. You will receive an email when new content is published.

Click Here to Manage Email Alerts

We were unable to process your request. Please try again later. If you continue to have this issue please contact customerservice@slackinc.com.

Zimmer Holdings, Inc. recently introduced the Continuum Acetabular Cup System at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons annual meeting. According to a company press release, the Continuum Cup combines the best of Zimmer’s proven hip technologies – Trabecular Metal Technology, Metasul Metal-on-Metal technology, BIOLOX delta and Longevity highly crosslinked polyethylene – with new innovations in what is now the company’s most versatile acetabular cup system.

Candidates for hip replacement surgery represent a wide array of ages and lifestyle demands. Different patient circumstances require surgeons to consider a variety of implant bearing surfaces to accommodate their patients’ needs. The Continuum Cup gives surgeons the option of choosing between metal or highly crosslinked polyethylene bearing surfaces, and metal or ceramic heads to match a range of patient lifestyles, the company stated.

“By creating a system with multiple cup liner options in a range of sizes and configurations, surgeons are able to select the cup and bearing surface which best meet each patient’s specific needs, creating a more personalized fit,” Jeff McCaulley, president, Zimmer Reconstructive, noted in the release.

“In combination with our comprehensive stem portfolio, including our Fitmore Hip Stem and our M/L Taper with Kinectiv technology, Zimmer offers surgeons tremendous flexibility and confidence to personalize the implant solution,” he continued.

Continuum shells are made with Zimmer’s proprietary trabecular metal technology, a highly porous tantalum material that supports initial implant stability and fixation. Trabecular metal technology is conducive to more normal bone formation and bone in-growth, decreased stress shielding, and the potential for improved long-term implant fixation. The Metasul liner incorporates Zimmer’s Metasul metal-on-metal technology, which has more than 20 years of clinical history. Longevity, the principal technology behind the polyethylene liner, is highly resistant to wear and aging and has more than 10 years of clinical experience, according to the release.