The John Charnley Award: Highly crosslinked polyethylene in total hip arthroplasty decreases long-term wear: a double-blind randomized trial

54 patients scheduled for total hip arthroplasty were randomized to receive either a highly crosslinked polyethylene acetabular liner, or an ultrahigh-molecular-weight polyethylene acetabular liner. This was done to compare long-term steady state wear of each liner material. Radiostereometric analyses were done to assess wear, and the Oxford Hip Score was used to assess functional outcomes. Results indicated that the ultrahigh-molecular-weight polyethylene group experienced significantly more steady state and volumetric wear between postoperative years 1 and 10, however Oxford Hip Scores and volumetric penetration were not found to vary significantly between groups.