Catastrophic failure of a dual mobility bearing in a revision total hip arthroplasty

• Published in: Arthroplasty today Vol. 4; no. 3; pp. 275 - 278
• Main Authors: Brazier, Brett G., Wren, Ethan R., Blackmer, Michael J., Marino, Dominic V., Cochran, Jason M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01-09-2018; Elsevier
• Subjects: Case Report; Dual mobility bearing; Increased abduction angle; Polyethylene wear; Revision total hip arthroplasty; Dual mobility bearing; Polyethylene wear; Increased abduction angle; Revision total hip arthroplasty
• ISSN: 2352-3441; 2352-3441
• DOI: 10.1016/j.artd.2018.03.004

The following case demonstrates an example of a catastrophic failure of a dual mobility (DM) bearing used in the setting of a revision total hip arthroplasty for an acetabular component with an excessive abduction angle. Currently, in the literature, it has been demonstrated that DM bearings have decreased polyethylene wear at abduction angles up to 65°; however, this has only been shown in in vitro studies. To our knowledge, there have been no reports of in vivo DM bearings that have demonstrated these same results. In this case, a DM bearing was used in a revision surgery with a retained acetabular component that had an abduction angle of approximately 70°-75° which ultimately led to catastrophic polyethylene failure.