LONG-TERM RESULTS OF CEMENTED FEMORAL STEMS WITH ROUGHENED PRECOATED SURFACES

Several recent articles have raised the question that rough surfaces w ith or without precoating may contribute to the loosening of cemented femoral stems. In this article the author collates selected reports of several different cemented femoral stem designs that have rough surfa ces which have shown excellent long term results. Femoral stem looseni ng is generally multifactorial. It often is difficult to separate the effect of stem design or other changes from the effect of surface fini sh. Many rough surfaced cemented femoral stems have served well for de cades. It is important to analyze all the pertinent factors in cases o f early loosening.