Fracture of a BIOLOX Delta Ceramic Femoral Head Articulating Against a Polyethylene Liner: A Case Report.

Case: A forty-five-year-old woman underwent primary total hip arthroplasty with a 36-mm BIOLOX delta ceramic femoral head articulating against a polyethylene liner. She presented with hip pain at eighteen months postoperatively, two months after being in a bicycle accident; fracture of the femoral head was diagnosed.

Conclusion: The possibility of a ceramic femoral head fracture should be decreased with use of the latest generation of ceramic material, a ceramic-on-polyethylene articulation rather than a ceramic-on-ceramic articulation, and a larger head size, all of which applied to this case.

The Roles of Mechanical Stresses in the Pathogenesis of Osteoarthritis: Implications for Treatment of Joint Injuries.

Excessive joint surface loadings, either single (acute impact event) or repetitive (cumulative contact stress), can cause the clinical syndrome of osteoarthritis (OA). Despite advances in treatment of injured joints, the risk of OA following joint injuries has not decreased in the last 50 years. Cumulative excessive articular surface contact stress that leads to OA results from post-traumatic joint incongruity and instability, and joint dysplasia, but also may cause OA in patients without known joint abnormalities.