Long-term survivorship of cemented all-polyethylene acetabular components in patients > 75 years of age

Between 1974 and 1982, 132 consecutive hips in 112 patients >75 years of ag e were treated with primary total hip arthroplasty for osteoarthritis using a cemented all-polyethylene T28 socket and cemented T28 or TR28 stem with a 28-mm head size. At the time of review, 94 patients (110 hips [83%]) had died and 18 patients (22 hips [17%]) were still living (mean age at follow- up, 93 years). Five hips (5 patients) were lost to follow-up. Clinical foll ow-up averaged 8.9 years for the entire group and 14.6 years for patients s till living. Only 2 acetabular components have been revised (1 for recurren t dislocation, 1 for infection). No acetabular component has required revis ion for aseptic loosening. Survivorship free of acetabular revision for ase ptic loosening at 10 years was 100%; free of symptomatic acetabular looseni ng, 97.4% (95% confidence interval, 91.8-100%); and free of acetabular loos ening, 95.9% (95% confidence interval, 89.7-100%). The commonest complicati on was postoperative hip dislocation, which occurred in 11 hips (8.7%) and which required reoperation in 2 hips. Cemented acetabular components implan ted in patients >75 years of age with a diagnosis of osteoarthritis showed a high rate of survivorship free of revision and free of symptomatic asepti c loosening.