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National Joint Registry report highlights need for data in unproven implants
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A review of a report published by The National Joint Registry for England, Wales and Northern Ireland found the registry’s report is accurate in providing information about the hip and knee arthroplasty devices used in the National Health Services in the United Kingdom, but researchers expressed concern about the utility of a small number of devices without long-term survivorship data.
“The majority of implants used have long-term survivorship data but a small percentage of implants used remain unproven,” Stephen Ng Man Sun, MD, and colleagues wrote in the study. “The outcome of this is yet to be seen but an emphasis should be placed in monitoring these implants closely and we should question whether these implants provide the best value for money.”
Sun and colleagues found 76,759 primary and revision total hip arthroplasties were performed in the National Health Services (NHS) in 2010, and 262 implants were used. Of these, 7,389 procedures were performed with 116 implants that did not have an Orthopaedic Data Evaluation Panel rating, the system used to assess hip implants in The National Joint Registry for England, Wales and Northern Ireland (NJR).
For total knee arthroplasties, surgeons in the NHS performed 75,678 procedures, which included 8 different implants for patella-femoral joint, 17 implants for unicondylar and 48 implants for total knee arthroplasties. Sun and colleagues noted that knee revision was different depending on the implant used – the lowest revision rate was 3.41% at 7 years, seen in cemented knees with a cruciate-retaining, fixed bearing implant.
Disclosure: Sun has no relevant financial disclosures.
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