What are the Real Differences When it Comes to Implants?

“Collateral”

Fancy industry jargon for company specific propaganda.

Every orthopedic company creates it, and every company is sure their particular version is unique.

In reality, these marketing materials are thinly veiled attempts to sell surgeons on incredibly nuanced reasons why their product is “superior”. The industry routinely uses words like proprietary, unique, and game-changing to describe products that upon closer inspection are functionally equivalent in design and performance.

So, all products are the same?

Not necessarily…though the differences are often so small as to be indistinguishable.

For the most part, these companies rely on the same design surgeons, base products on the same design philosophies, and source materials from the same manufacturers.

Exhibit A: Biolox Delta ceramic heads are offered by nearly every implant company that deals in total hip replacement. All these heads are manufactured exclusively by CeramTec. That means, irrespective of which logo comes on the box you get your pink ceramic head out of, it’s coming from the same place, manufactured by the same machines, and given the same attention to detail as the heads from every other company.

None of this is meant to take away from the genuine innovation that has pushed the practice of orthopedics forward over the years.

There have been legitimate advancements in design and materials that benefit surgeons and patients alike. That said, those advancements are becoming ever more incremental and are now readily available from companies of all shapes and sizes.

So, while companies are quick to tout their carefully curated statistics, which paint their “unique” option in a favorable light, the reality is that companies across the board have good products.

Which means, when paying a premium for your implant of choice, the money may not be going toward an appreciably different or better product, but rather toward the box it comes in.

Is the extra cost worth it?

That’s for the consumer to decide.