Tips of the trade #15. Removal of hardware prior to total hip replacement.

Since the introduction of metals into orthopaedic surgery over a hundred years ago, patients often present with a wide variety of hardware in their bones. Normally this is of little significance, but if the hardware is in the proximal femur and the hip is arthritic, then the metal must be removed before hip replacement can commence. This paper presents a series of guidelines to be used in such cases.