Conclusions Current published evidence does not support survivorship differences among commonly used bearing surfaces in patients younger than age 65 years undergoing THA at short- to mid-term followup .
Background  Total hip arthroplasty ( THA )  is increasingly being performed in patients with long life expectancies and active lifestyles .
Newer implant bearing surfaces , with superior wear characteristics , often are used in this cohort with the goal of improving longevity of the prosthesis , but comparisons across the numerous available bearing surfaces are limited , so the surgeon and patient may have difficulty deciding which implants to use .
Questions / purpose sThe purpose of this study was to answer the following question : Is there a short- to mid-term survivorship difference between common THA bearings used in patients younger than age 65 years ?
A prospective randomised controlled trial comparing three alternative bearing surfaces in primary total hip replacement.
The ideal bearing surface for young patients undergoing total hip replacement ( THR ) remains controversial . We report the five-year results of a r and omised controlled trial comparing the clinical and radiological outcomes of 102 THRs in 91 patients who were < 65 years of age . These patients were r and omised to receive a cobalt-chrome on ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene , cobalt-chrome on highly cross-linked polyethylene , or a ceramic-on-ceramic bearing . In all , 97 hip replacements in 87 patients were available for review at five years . Two hips had been revised , one for infection and one for peri-prosthetic fracture . At the final follow-up there were no significant differences between the groups for the mean Western Ontario and McMaster Universities osteoarthritis index ( pain , p = 0.543 ; function , p = 0.10 ; stiffness , p = 0.99 ) , Short Form-12 ( physical component , p = 0.878 ; mental component , p = 0.818 ) or Harris hip scores ( p = 0.22 ) . Radiological outcomes revealed no significant wear in the ceramic group . Comparison of st and ard and highly cross-linked polyethylene , however , revealed an almost threefold difference in the mean annual linear wear rates ( 0.151 mm/year versus 0.059 mm/year , respectively ) ( p < 0.001 )
Conclusions Current published evidence does not support survivorship differences among commonly used bearing surfaces in patients younger than age 65 years undergoing THA at short- to mid-term followup .
Background  Total hip arthroplasty ( THA )  is increasingly being performed in patients with long life expectancies and active lifestyles .
Newer implant bearing surfaces , with superior wear characteristics , often are used in this cohort with the goal of improving longevity of the prosthesis , but comparisons across the numerous available bearing surfaces are limited , so the surgeon and patient may have difficulty deciding which implants to use .
Questions / purpose sThe purpose of this study was to answer the following question : Is there a short- to mid-term survivorship difference between common THA bearings used in patients younger than age 65 years ?