The Search for Stability

OREF grant recipient compares hip implant procedures

Lisa Applegate

One of the most memorable patients Orthopaedic Research and Education Foundation (OREF) research grant recipient Wael K. Barsoum, MD, ever treated came to him with a relatively avoidable problem.

Wael K. Barsoum, MD

The patient, a 40-year-old father of three, was frustrated that several procedures to address the instability of his hip replacement had not worked. “He couldn’t participate in activities with his children because he feared that his hip would pop out,” remembered Dr. Barsoum, vice chair of the department of orthopaedic surgery at Cleveland Clinic.

Dr. Barsoum and his team discovered the underlying problem was a malposition of the prosthetic components, which they were able to correct with one more surgery. The patient could finally chase his kids around without fear.

“It doesn’t seem like a huge deal to us, but for the patient, it really gave him his life back. It’s a really big deal,” said Dr. Barsoum.

Replicating instability
Joint replacement instability has been an interest for Dr. Barsoum since he decided to pursue a career as both a clinician and scientist. With the help of an OREF Research Grant, Dr. Barsoum and his team have built a cadaveric robotic model to investigate the relative stability of femoral head resurfacing and total hip arthroplasty.

Experimental set-up consisting of a hip specimen rigidly secured to a custom designed rotary stage and potting fixture mounted onto a 6 DOF robotic manipulator, the Rotopod R2000. A six DOF force-torque sensor was used to evaluate force vectors required for dislocation. The MicroScribe G2L coordinate measuring machine was utilized for mapping this coordinate system.
Courtesy of Wael K. Barsoum, MD

Dr. Barsoum and his team are looking for factors that influence hip implant stability. He hopes to use the data gathered from this OREF-supported study to apply for a National Institutes of Health grant. He credits his OREF grant as indispensable in beginning his research. Now an OREF Order of Merit donor, he believes OREF’s greatest strength is launching the careers of young researchers.

Lisa Applegate is a contributing writer for OREF and can be reached at communications@oref.org.

2013 Annual Meeting News
Tuesday through Friday, February 19 – 23, 2013.
http://www.aaos.org/news/acadnews/2013/AAOS18_3_22.asp