ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Wear of the bearing surface is a critical element in determining the longevity of a total hip arthroplasty (THA). Over the past decade, concerns related to modern metal-on-metal (MoM) bearings and corrosion at the femoral head-neck interface have influenced surgeon selection of bearing surfaces. The purpose of this study is to analyze trends in THA bearing surface selection from 2007 through 2014 using a large national database. METHODS: The Nationwide Inpatient Sample database was used to extract bearing surface data from patients who underwent a primary THA between 2007 and 2014. Patients were grouped by bearing surface type: metal-on-polyethylene (MoP), ceramic-on-polyethylene (CoP), MoM, and ceramic-on-ceramic (CoC) bearings. Descriptive statistics were employed to describe trends. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify differences between bearing surface groups. RESULTS: During the study period, 2,460,640 THA discharges were identified, of which 1,059,825 (43.1%) had bearing surface data. A total of 496,713 (46.9%) MoP, 307,907 (29.1%) CoP, 210,381 (19.9%) MoM, and 44,823 (4.2%) CoC cases were identified. MoM utilization peaked in 2008 representing 40.1% of THAs implanted that year and steadily declined to 4.0% in 2014. From 2007 to 2014, the use of CoP bearing surfaces increased from 11.1% of cases in 2007 to 50.8% of cases in 2014. In 2014, CoP utilization surpassed MoP which represented 42.1% of bearing surfaces that year. CONCLUSION: During the study period, MoM bearing surfaces decreased precipitously, while CoP surpassed MoP as the most popular bearing surface used in a THA.