As one of the most experienced hip replacement doctors in Seattle, Dr. Barrett performs over 500 joint replacement surgeries annually. For more information about hip and knee injuries, sports medicine, and more, contact Proliance Orthopedic Associates at 425.656.5060.
Recently, I had the honor of presenting at a hip replacement conference in Rome, Italy on October 11-12 2018. At this meeting, we reviewed data on the Corail femoral stem and the Pinnacle acetabular cup, both products made by DePuy Synthes Companies.
The Corail hip has been in use for over 30 years and has achieved excellent results in all major registry databases. The Pinnacle Acetabular component has been in use for 18 years and also has an excellent track record in registry data. The combination of stem and cup together has the lowest 10-year revision or failure rate in those major registries. Registry data is very useful because it tracks implants used by all surgeons in a country. The most widely quoted registries are those of the United Kingdom and Australia, seeing as they’ve been around the longest and have tracked the greatest number of implants.
As one of the surgeons who helped to design the Pinnacle Cup, I have been using this implant for over 18 years. It has provided outstanding results not only for my patients but for surgeons worldwide. I began using the Corail stem over 10 years ago when I switched to using the Anterior Approach for my hip replacement patients. The most commonly used bearing in the US is a crosslinked polyethylene liner and either a cobalt chromium or ceramic head. By using implants with well-documented long-term successful outcomes, we provide our patients with the best opportunity for success.
Several factors affect outcomes in hip replacement including implants used, the hospital, the patient themselves, and a surgeon’s experience and results. Experience includes whether a surgeon is fellowship trained. Fellowship training entails that a surgeon has spent extra time specializing in joint replacement, performing a larger volume of surgeries and using more techniques while tracking their results. At Proliance Orthopedic Associates we have a research department that has been tracking my results since the early 2000s.