DePuy ASR metal-on-metal hip implants are frequently associated with premature device failure requiring revision (this prompted the recall of the ASR/ASRXL models in 2010) and femoral fracture.  Much of the more recent research deals with the ASR complication of metal dissemination – the wearing off of tiny metal particles from the implants that…

Here is an excerpt from the abstract of a 2013 article published in Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research by KT Hug et al.: “The Articular Surface Replacement™ (ASR™) metal-on-metal hip arthroplasty system (DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc, Warsaw, IN, USA) reportedly has a higher than anticipated early failure rate leading to a voluntary recall. This prompted…

In 2012, GS Whitwell et al. published a report in the medical journal Hip International titled “The articular surface replacement implant recall: a United Kingdom district hospital experience.” summarizing the experience of one hospital after the 2010 DePuy ASR recall.

At the time of the ASR recall in 2010, 111 of…

In 2013, a medical research team led by F. Randelli published an article in which it is stated “Patients with ASR implants (resurfacing and large-diameter (XL) metal-on-metal (MoM) total hip arthroplasty), even if asymptomatic and with a stable prosthesis, may present extremely high blood metal ion levels.”  This article was titled “Radiographically undetectable periprosthetic…

In 2013, a team of researchers led by A. Reito published a paper in Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research titled “High prevalence of adverse reactions to metal debris in small-headed ASR™ hips.” with two ideas in mind.  First, these researchers note that “There has been increasing concern of metal-on-metal (MOM) hip replacements regarding…

Published online in June 2013 (print Jan. 2014) in The Journal of Arthroplasty, a study titled “The Effect of Acetabular Inclination on Metal Ion Levels Following Metal-on-Metal Hip Arthroplasty.” aimed to determine the degree to which the specific positioning of DePuy ASR hip replacement components changed blood metal ion levels in hip replacement…

A 2013 article published in Hip International titled “Blood levels of cobalt and chromium are inversely correlated to head size after metal-on-metal resurfacing arthroplasty.” by a team of researchers led by MC Parry from the UK aimed to “assess the effect of head size, implant design and component positioning on metal production by…

In a paper titled “Hip arthroplasty with the articular surface replacement (ASR) system: survivorship analysis and functional outcomes.” published in European Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery and Traumatology, the authors begin by stating “The articular surface replacement (ASR) hip resurfacing system, now withdrawn, has the highest all-cause revision rate (24.2 % at 7 years)…