FDA Poised to Approve Depuy Orthopaedics First Ceramic-On-Metal Hip Replacement for U.S. Market

Feb. 3, 2010
FDA poised to approve Depuy Orthopaedics first ceramic-on-metal hip replacement for U.S. market

Depuy Orthopaedics, www.depuy.com

An FDA advisory panel has recommended approval of a ceramic-on-metal hip replacement from Depuy Orthopaedics, Warsaw, Ind. It is believed the FDA will approve the new implant, the Pinnacle CoMplete Acetabular Hip System, by next month, making it the first such hip implant in the U.S.

Until now, American hip replacements had a ball-and-socket design that involved metal-on-metal contact. The problem has been that this contact puts wear on the metal components and metal ions end up in the patient’s blood stream. Pregnant women and people with kidney disease, among other potential implant candidates, have been advised against metal-on-metal artificial hips because of concerns about metal ions.

In two years of testing, the new hip replacement showed 90% less wear than metal-on-metal designs under normal walking conditions. The reduction in wear went to 80% among patients who ran or put “more than normal” stress on their hips.

The Pinnacle implant is already available in 40 countries outside the U.S., according to Depuy.

Sponsored Recommendations

7 Reasons Why Air Bearings Outperform Mechanical Bearings

Feb. 7, 2025
Frictionless air bearings and air bearing stages have decisive advantages in precision motion and automation applications.

Hexapod Robot Applications in Automation and Automotive Assembly

Feb. 7, 2025
Hexapod 6-DOF Robots in Automation and Automotive Assembly | 6-Axis Precision Parallel Robot | Cobot for High Precision Applications

What is a Difference between a Gantry Positioning System and a Split-Bridge?

Feb. 7, 2025
The design of a Gantry Positioning System and Split-Bridge Positioning system are related. Learn how they differ and what to use best for your application.

Application Solutions with 6-Axis Hexapod Positioning Systems

Feb. 7, 2025
Explore applications, articles, and background information on 6-Axis Hexapod Positioning Systems and how they can help you improve your alignment system.

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of Machine Design, create an account today!