How Useful Is Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Evaluating Adverse Local Tissue Reaction?

Biologic failures of hip arthroplasty have emerged as an increasing threat to the longevity of the prosthesis. While wear of modern-day bearings has been greatly reduced with the advent of cross-linked polyethylene, local reaction to metal particles either from the bearing itself or to any of the modular tapers appears to be on the rise. Monitoring of these reactions by the use of plain radiographs or serum markers appears to be insufficient to gauge the gravity of the response. Over the past decade, the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques has emerged as the superior noninvasive instrument to assess the extent of soft tissue reaction around hip implants. The use of MRI around implants was initially challenging due to the presence of relatively high ferrous metals especially cobalt which causes local distortion of the magnetic fields. Novel changes in pulse sequencing have greatly improved the sensitivity and specificity of MRI so that at this time, MR is the most predictive diagnostic tool in evaluating the extent of tissue destruction. We feel strongly that modern MRI techniques are the most important tool in the workup of the patient suspected of having an adverse tissue reaction after hip arthroplasty.