Pyrocarbon Humeral Head in a Shoulder Hemiarthroplasty: Preliminary Results at 3 Years Follow-Up and Review of the Current Literature

Abstract

Shoulder hemiarthroplasty is a viable option in young patients with an intact rotator cuff in order to preserve the native glenoid. To avoid the dreaded and expected wear of the glenoid in very active shoulders, implants with humeral head coated with a high resistant and elastic material—pyrolytic carbon—are now an option. The authors present the first pyrocarbon coated hemishoulder arthroplasty performed at our Orthopedic Department in a patient with osteonecrosis of the humeral head. At three years of follow-up, the patient is pain free and without limitations in his daily work. The Constant score was applied pre- and postoperatively, and an improvement of 32 points was reported. Larger cohorts with long-term follow-up are required to confirm our promising results.

Pyrocarbon hemiarthroplasty and the shoulder: biomechanical and clinical results of an emerging treatment option

“…Different types of pyrocarbon implants exist, especially in the shoulder; and several clinical reports describe their use for treatment of challenging shoulder pathologies in young patients ( Figs. 2 and 3 ) [ 17 , 18 ].…”

“…In order to solve this challenge, pyrolytic carbon (pyrocarbon) in the form of pyrocarbon-coated implants or interpositional prosthetic components was introduced as an alternative weight-bearing surface that can decrease glenoid erosion in hemiarthroplasty procedures [16][17][18]. Early in vitro studies showed promising results, with reduced wear rates compared to other materials [19][20][21].…”