The association of cobalturia with cobaltism symptoms a prospective blinded study of 229 post-arthroplasty patients.

Introduction: Cobalt is a mitochondrial toxin, clinical cobaltism manifests with constitutional, neurologic, and cardiovascular symptomatology. Cobalt's severe toxidrome is known through case reports from extreme wear or corrosion of cobalt-chromium arthroplasty components. However, the spectrum and epidemiology of orthopedic-implant cobaltism and its relationship to duration and degree of cobalt exposure are not well defined.

Prevalence of Cobalturia Among Adults With Joint Replacements.

This cohort study examines the association of cobalt-chrome arthroprosthetic components with adverse reactions to metallic debris, such as cobaltism.

Corrosion of Polished Cobalt-Chrome Stems Presenting as Cobalt Encephalopathy.

Adverse reactions to metallic debris from corrosion of polished cobalt-chromium-cemented femoral stems are reported. Cobaltism (systemic cobalt poisoning) has not been reported from this phenomenon. Three patients presented to their surgeon for ongoing care 10-20 years after primary metal-on-plastic hip arthroplasty with the same polished cobalt-chromium-cemented femoral stems (Heritage, Zimmer).

F-18 FDG PET brain imaging in symptomatic arthroprosthetic cobaltism.

Purpose: Imaging studies of cobalt toxicity from cobalt-chromium alloy arthroprosthetics have focused on the local intra-articular and peri-articular presentation from failing joint replacements. Most studies investigating neurological findings have been small case series focused on the clinical findings of memory loss, diminished executive function, tremor, hearing and vision loss, depression, and emotional lability. This study utilizes software-based quantitative analysis of brain metabolism to assess the degree of hypometabolism and areas of susceptibility, determine if a pattern of involvement exists, and measure reversibility of findings after prosthetic revision to cobalt-free appliances.

An introduction to Na(18)F bone scintigraphy: basic principles, advanced imaging concepts, and case examples.

Na(18)F, an early bone scintigraphy agent, is poised to reenter mainstream clinical imaging with the present generations of stand-alone PET and PET/CT hybrid scanners. (18)F PET scans promise improved imaging quality for both benign and malignant bone disease, with significantly improved sensitivity and specificity over conventional planar and SPECT bone scans. In this article, basic acquisition information will be presented along with examples of studies related to oncology, sports medicine, and general orthopedics.