Catastrophic progression of the disassembly of a modular acetabular component.

Disassembly of a metal-backed modular acetabular component used for total hip arthroplasty is becoming more common. If the acetabular disassembly is detected early, the revision procedures are relatively simple. In the case of long-term sustained disassembly, however, there are more complicated problems, and more difficult revision procedures are needed. We report a case of long-term sustained disassembly of a modular acetabular component in order to alert orthopaedic surgeons of the catastrophic progression to more severe complications, such as the loosening of the metal-acetabular component and severe acetabular osteolysis.