Metalic Hips Failing at Fast Rate
As surgeons here sliced through tissue surrounding a failed artificial hip in a 53-year-old man, they discovered what looked like a biological dead zone. There were matted strands of tissue stained gray and black; a large strip of muscle near the hip no longer contracted.
The ball section of a removed artificial hip. Some patients with all-metal hips, ones in which the cup and ball of a joint are made of metal, said they had trouble finding a doctor to help them. Dr. Young-Min Kwon, the lead orthopedic surgeon on the operation, said the damage was more extensive than tests had indicated and might be permanent. “The prognosis is guarded,” Dr. Kwon said.
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