Ceramic-on-Ceramic versus Ceramic-on-Polyethylene Bearings in Total Hip Arthroplasty: Results of a Multicenter Prospective Randomized Study and Update of Modern Ceramic Total Hip Trials in the USA

One reason why otherwise well functioning total hip replacements have a finite service life is eventual aseptic loosening of the implants because of osteolysis induced by wear particles from the artificial bearing. Pain and osteolysis from wear debris can manifest even in the absence of aseptic loosening. Total hip replacements with ceramic-on-ceramic articulations have shown less wear both in vitro and in vivo. A randomized prospective clinical trial was conducted to compare the outcomes of ceramic-on-ceramic articulations to ceramic-on-polyethylene articulations. Two year data are of interest since premature failures of ceramic femoral heads usually occur by this time interval. Of 500 patients enrolled in this trial, half received total hip replacements with alumina-on-alumina bearings, while the other half had ceramic-on-polyethylene bearings. At the two-year follow-up, 444 patients ( 217 study group and 227 control group) were available for review. The clinical and radiographic outcomes between the groups were comparable, and reflected the typical results of primary total hip replacements. No complications related to spontaneous failures of the ceramic bearings were observed at this early follow-up period. Further follow-up is needed to confirm these findings over the long-term, but the short-term safety of alumina ceramic bearings in hip replacements reported in other recent reports is further validated by our findings.