Magnetic hip to reduce revision replacement surgeries

London, Jan 31 (UNI) A revolutionary hip replacement, inspired by motor vehicle lubrication system, would make hazardours and painful repeat replacements history.

MagneHip, recently named the Best Joint Replacement Idea at the 2007 Bone And Joint Innovation Awards, lasts at least three times as long as conventional prosthetics.

Conventional prosthetic joints-- made up of plastic and metal-- wear out usually after a decade and need to be replaced. The repeat surgery is not only less satisfactory but also time consuming.

Just like a motor vehicle lubrication system use magnets to filter debris, the MagneHip prevents the wear and tear of the prosthetic from becoming stuck in the joint. The chromium-cobalt alloy replacement is more resistant to wear and tear than its conventional counterpart making it last really long.

The brainchild of British Orthopaedic surgeons Paul Lee and Michael Clarke, MagneHip is undergoing laboratory testing and clinical trials are expected to commence within three years.

Hip replacement operations are common among those aged over 50 years due to natural erosion of the joints. Around 65,000 hip replacements are performed each year in Britain.

''A colleague and I worked on the idea for five years before we came up with a design that solves the problem,'' Daily Mail quoted Paul Lee, who has built a working prototype, as saying.

''It is all based on the workings of a car engine, which uses the same sort of system to make it last longer,'' he said.

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