Zimmer Holdings Inc has begun sales in the United States of the Trilogy Acetabular System Constrained Liner. Zimmer recently received clearance from the Food and Drug Administration to begin sales of the product, which has been available in markets outside of the U.S. since 2001.

"The revision hip market is one of the fastest growing segments in orthopaedics, with procedure growth of nearly 15%, and this addition gives us a comprehensive offering for acetabular revision," said Ray Elliott, Chairman, President and CEO of Zimmer. "The Trilogy System is already well accepted among surgeons, but the addition of the constrained liner will make the line more attractive to both Zimmer and non-Zimmer customers."

Constrained liners are often used in revision surgeries to address situations where the hip has a tendency to dislocate. The extra constraint provided by the liner design helps keep the hip replacement components properly mated.

"Because the Trilogy Constrained Liner mates with other Trilogy components, surgeons now have the flexibility to leave a well-fixed acetabular shell in place during a revision surgery, and simply insert a new liner," said Michael J. Anderson, an orthopaedic surgeon with the Blount Orthopaedic Clinic in Milwaukee. "Revision procedures are typically much more complicated than the initial hip replacement, so it's important that surgeons have as many tools as possible to address each patient's revision needs. This will allow us to restore function in many patients who would otherwise be facing ongoing problems with dislocation."