Addressing the Negative Press

There have been some recent articles in the press that have expressed some concern over Metal on metal and hip resurfacing in general.  To someone just reading up on the procedure, these articles can be very misleading.  Please keep in mind that the articles are written by a journalist (mainly Barry Meier) that wants to "sell" stories and not necessarily pass on good solid objective information.  The above mentioned journalist likes to write HALF truths.  I know for a FACT because he had called me personally and interviewed me for over an hour on the phone.  He asked me for the names of two patients who had hip resurfacing, one success story that was a female and one femoral neck fracture that was a female.  I gave him the names of Kathy the neck fracture and Melissa a gal who had her BHR for over 12 years and was extremely happy with her results.  Barry Meier NEVER even bothered to contact Melissa, the success story.  He ONLY chose to print the negative side of things in his first article that had within the title Women Red Flags about hip resurfacing. 

I am sure you have read some of his work, he has come out with so many HALF truth articles since that first one, either warning women not to get the procedure, or overly emphasizing the VERY small percentage risk of neck fracture without talking about the causes or talking about the excess metal wear without mentioning that the main cause for this is due to surgeon malpositioning of the component.  He fails to mention that the very first pseuodo tumor was found in a patient who had a POLY Total Hip Replacement device, not even a metal on metal device. 

 Also a lot about metal ions, using scare tactics and only quoting the one Oxford study that produced horrible results and a lot of Pseudo Tumors instead of mentioning the details behind that study including the fact that a lot of the surgeons in the study were only trainees and the fact that the components were placed at such ridiculous angles that anything installed that poorly would surely produce negative outcomes.  The ideal cup angle placement should be about 40 degrees and this Oxford study produced cup angles ranging from 10.1 degrees upwards to 80.6 degrees which is astounding and unacceptable. 

The Press fails to mention the real important facts behind their claims.  IMO, and this is just that, my non-medical personal opinion, these articles are extremely biased, misleading and leave out way too many facts.  They are extremely one sided, written in a way to scare people off from an incredible procedure that if done correctly gives patients back our lives.  I sincerely hope that the author of some of these articles never has a hip problem or ever has a close family member, like his wife or sister or in the future his own daughter in need of hip surgery.

This procedure is amazing and I for one am an extremely happy patient that happens to be a female with mild dysplasia and extreme allergy to metal earrings and I am small boned.  My left BHR hip resurfacing is still going strong at close to 6 years post op (December 1, 2005).  It worked so well in my left hip, that I went back on December 6, 2010 to get my right hip done, so I am 9 months post op today from my right BHR hip.  My BHR's literally gave me back my life, a full active life.  I have just started doing the P90X workout and could not imagine doing something that aggressive had I had a THR.

Potential patients researching their options should do their own research and discuss their options with Orthopedic surgeons that do BOTH procedures.  Doctors that have done at a minimum several hundred, preferably at least 500 resurfacings by now, since FDA approval was over 4 years ago.   Do not believe all that you read in the press.  Keep in mind that all Hip Resurfacing surgeons also perform Total Hip Replacement's but most Total Hip Replacement surgeons do NOT perform hip resurfacing. 

Below are video interviews with six world renowned Hip Surgeons.  Between the six of them, in May of 2010, they had performed more than 27,000 total hip surgeries and over 13,000 Hip Resurfacings, so by now, those numbers have gone way up.  The first one is with Derek McMinn, the inventor of the BHR device and is in three parts.