Intraarticular methyl methacrylate: a complication of hip surgery

Methyl methacrylate, used as a grout during hip arthroplasty, can inadvertently become lodged between acetabular and femoral components during surgery. After resumption of ambulation, crescentic fragments may extrude into the pseudocapsule. If mobile methyl methacrylate fragments lodge within the joint, late surgical failure may result because of methyl methacrylate's abrasive character. Two cases of total hip replacement and one case of femoral arthroplasty are reported in which intraarticular methyl methacrylate was identified retrospectively; all three patients remain asymptomatic at the time of the report.