Smith & Nephew Enables Minimally Invasive and Anterior Approach Hip Replacement Surgeries With Launch of Modular, Mini Hip Stem

MEMPHIS, Tenn., Feb. 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — At this
week’s annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic
Surgeons, Smith & Nephew (NYSE: SNN, LSE: SN) Orthopaedic
Division introduced its Short Modular Femoral (SMF™) Hip
System, a modular total hip replacement stem system that exceeds
the versatility and neck strength of a standard, full-size primary
hip stem, while providing the stability of the traditionally
longer, more invasive implant.  With this new design
technology, surgeons can more efficiently implant Smith &
Nephew’s proprietary VERILAST™ advanced bearing material via
the full range of surgical techniques.

The SMF Hip is 20-percent shorter than conventional hip stems
while also allowing less healthy bone to be removed from the
femoral neck. This bone-conserving design delivers a wider range of
options should future surgeries be required. Further, due to its
reduced size, surgeons can implant it through smaller incisions or
through an anterior incision, which minimizes soft tissue trauma
and speeds patients’ return to active mobility.

The SMF hip system modular neck options give the surgeon the
opportunity to more closely replicate their patients’ natural
anatomy.  Made from cobalt chrome, these modular necks exceed
the fatigue strength of other modular neck hip implants, which are
most often made from titanium.

Prior to its launch, Smith & Nephew performed a
radiostereometric analysis (RSA) on the SMF stem, a study that
measures the relative position of tiny metal markers in the implant
to the surrounding bone in order to assess the stem’s movement and
stability post-operatively. The results indicate that the SMF stem
had comparable post-operative stability during the crucial first
year of fixation as Smith & Nephew’s clinically proven,
full-size Synergy hip stem.

“The SMF Hip System combines in one implant many of the leading
trends in total hip replacement surgery—

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