Patients who have had an older type of hip replacement fitted could be at a higher risk of developing heart disease.
A recent study from Heart Research UK has shown patients who underwent hip-replacement surgery in the 2000s could have a higher chance of suffering from heart damage, as tiny metal ions are breaking off some implants.
These ions, which are made up of metals cobalt and chromium, then leak into the bloodstream and travel around the body, affecting the heart in particular and causing damage to muscles, bones, and organs.
The older-style implants, fitted during the 2000s, were given to patients as a hip replacement that would “last a lifetime” but leading doctors raised concerns in 2008 about their safety after tens of thousands were fitted.
In 2012, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) issued guidance recommending annual blood or MRI checks for patients who had had metal implants amid fears over the previously unknown risks.
Now, researchers at Heart Research UK have looked at the link and found there are patients who are now at risk of heart disease as a result of the surgery.
Researchers looked at blood samples from 30 people with metal-on-metal hip replacements and identified levels of metal in their blood. They then used ultrasound tests to look at their heart health.
Susan Currie, an associate professor in cardiovascular physiology at the University of Strathclyde, who led the study said: “This is a much more sensitive measure of heart contractility than an echocardiogram [ECG] but it is not something that’s routinely looked at. All of the patients had normal echocardiogram function but, when we scratched the surface using a much more sensitive method, some of those patients had abnormal contractile function, and there’s no way that you would pick that up with a routine check.”
Further studies also found the metals interfered with calcium levels in heart cells, which reduce their ability to contract, leading to heart dysfunction.
Ms Currie continued: “We’re talking about a very small percentage of people who are going to develop heart disease — but, in some cases, it’s heart failure, so this is something that cannot be ignored.”
Helen Wilson, the director of research at Heart Research UK, said: “This study has helped us to understand the link between hip replacements containing cobalt and the development of heart disease, something that we previously had limited insight into.
“The team has also made progress towards developing a test to measure the risk of heart damage. In the future, we hope this will improve outcomes for hip-replacement patients by reducing the risk.”
