Charnley low-friction arthroplasty of the hip. Long-term results in South Africa.

Long-term results of 98 Charnley low-friction arthroplasties were followed for a period of a mean of 12 years; 98 of 470 operations qualified for this strict long-term study, 78 (79.6%) with excellent results. If excessive medialization of the cup is avoided, socket complications appear to be minimal (4%). The majority of femoral component failures resulted from femoral stem breakage. Only four hips (4.08%) developed loosening of the femoral stem.