New Promising Data on S&N’s BIRMINGHAM HIP™ System

Link  http://www.ryortho.com/NEWSSHORTS/volume3/issue39/12-10-07-NS-New.htm

By Elizabeth Hofheinz, MEd, MPH December 10, 2007

No more wondering Down Under. The data is in. Smith & Nephew, Inc.’s Orthopaedic Reconstruction business is announcing the release of positive six-year clinical data by the Australian Orthopaedic Association National Joint Replacement Registry on the company’s BIRMINGHAM HIP Resurfacing System (BHR™). According to the company, the BHR, which has now been implanted in nearly 80,000 patients in 26 countries, conserves more of a patient’s bone than a traditional hip replacement, enabling younger, more active patients to undergo hip replacement surgery while preserving all future surgery options, including a primary hip replacement. The design of the BIRMINGHAM HIP Resurfacing System also offers patients a reduced risk of dislocation. The report revealed that the BHR device has the highest hip resurfacing system survivability rate among all of its established competitors for which data had been collected.

Included in the Australian report was the following information:

Since the inception of the registry, the BIRMINGHAM HIP Resurfacing System has been the overwhelming choice of patients—over 75% of resurfacing procedures have used the BHR device.

The BHR System has a revision rate of 0.8 per 100 component years or 2.5%.

The BHR System’s rate is derived from 19,585 component years, 19 times that of any other resurfacing competitor.

Three alternative hip resurfacing systems were cited for their high revision rates.

According to the registry, hip resurfacing accounts for 7.9% of all primary hip replacements. Commenting in the news release was Joseph DeVivo, President of Smith & Nephew Orthopaedic Reconstruction: “We are extremely pleased with the Registry’s results. The report once again highlights the ability of the BIRMINGHAM HIP Resurfacing System to help people maintain the most active and healthy lifestyle possible. The BIRMINGHAM HIP Resurfacing System lets active people live the life they love and continue to pursue their passions. The long-term clinical data available clearly demonstrates the benefits of the BIRMINGHAM HIP Resurfacing System, which is the gold standard for resurfacing technology in the world and a significant addition to our reconstructive product portfolio in the United States.”

The Registry evaluates the timing and reasons for revision surgery as well as mortality rates, and it measures the success rates of products and procedures across Australia. This year’s report is based on the analysis of 332,700 hip and knee procedures undertaken in 271,188 patients from September 1999 through December 31, 2006.

According to the company, the study is highly regarded for its comprehensiveness and accuracy because the Registry is able to obtain a near-complete set of data relating to hip and knee joint replacement for an entire country. The Registry receives information from all public and private hospitals undertaking joint replacement. Using a strict validation process and following retrieval of unreported records and checking of unmatched data, the initial validation for the 2005/6 Registry data resulted in over 96% of Registry records verified against health department data.