Bloomberg News (6/26, Edney) reports the Food
and Drug Administration has ruled that metal-on-hip implants produced by
Johnson & Johnson and Simmer Holding "need more consistent testing to
help lower high failure rates that lead to risky replacement surgeries, a
report by regulators said." FDA staff "said agency advisers meeting
on the devices this week should consider when and how patients should undergo
imaging and ion testing to measure the metal's effect on surrounding tissue,
according to documents posted on the agency's website today." According to
Bloomberg, the FDA "will convene an advisory panel meeting June 27 and 28
to discuss the implants, which have been the subject of thousands of patient
lawsuits."
The AP (6/26, Perrone) reports some surgeons have
turned to metal implants in recent years, believing them to be more durable
than traditional plastic and ceramic implants. But "in March, British
experts at the world's largest artificial joint registry told doctors to stop
using metal-on-metal hip replacements, citing an analysis showing they have to
be replaced more often than other implants. Hip replacements are supposed to
last between 10 to 15 years, but more than 6 percent of patients with metal
hips needed them replaced after less than five years. That compared with just 2
percent of people who had ceramic or plastic joints."
No comments:
Post a Comment