THE IMPORTANCE OF SYSTEMATIC HISTOLOGICAL EXAMINATION AFTER LOOSENINGOF AN IMPLANT

A 65-year-old man presented with a painful hip five years after a ceme nted replacement, Histological examination of a biopsy taken from tiss ue surrounding the femoral implant showed infiltration of a squamous-c ell carcinoma. Further investigation revealed a primary growth in the left lung. This rare example of a metastasis in relation to a joint re placement illustrates the necessity for histological examination of th e tissue adjacent to a loose prosthesis.