The mechanical effect of the existing cement mantle on the in-cement femoral revision

BackgroundCement-in-cement revision hip arthroplasty is an increasingly popular technique to replace a loose femoral stem which retains much of the original cement mantle. However, some concern exists regarding the retention of the existing fatigued and aged cement in such cement-in-cement revisions. This study investigates whether leaving an existing fatigued and aged cement mantle degrades the mechanical performance of a cement-in-cement revision construct.MethodsPrimary cement mantles were formed by cementing a polished stem into sections of tubular steel. If in the test group, the mantle underwent conditioning in saline to simulate ageing and was subject to a fatigue of 1 million cycles. If in the control group no such conditioning or fatigue was carried out. The cement-in-cement procedure was then undertaken. Both groups underwent a fatigue of 1 million cycles subsequent to the revision procedure.FindingsApplication of a Mann–Whitney test on the recorded subsidence (means: 0.51, 0.46, n = 10 + 10, P = 0.496) and inducible displacement (means: 0.38, 0.36, P = 0.96) revealed that there was no statistical difference between the groups.InterpretationThis study represents further biomechanical investigation of the mechanical behaviour of cement-in-cement revision constructs. Results suggest that pre-revision fatigue and ageing of the cement may not be deleterious to the mechanical performance of the revision construct. Thus, this study provides biomechanical evidence to back-up recent successes with this useful revision technique.