Polyethylene liner dissociation in Harris-Galante acetabular components: a report of 7 cases.

Harris-Galante modular acetabular components (Zimmer, Warsaw, IN) have been used widely for primary and revision total hip arthroplasties. The survivorship of this implant has been well documented in the literature. Failure of the liner locking mechanism and subsequent dissociation of the polyethylene liner from the metal-backed shell is a potential cause of failure, however. We report 7 cases of liner dissociation and propose the mode of failure. The result in all cases was a well-fixed metal acetabular shell with a failed locking mechanism, which usually is managed by revision of the entire component. This procedure may be accompanied by the potential loss of acetabular bone stock, which should be replenished.