ABSTRACT
In the 1960s, the world of orthopedic surgery turned its full attention to the small town of Wrightington, Lancashire, England, as John Charnley (1911-1982) mesmerized his colleagues with ad vances that made total hip replacement (THR) a real and routine possibility.1'13 Charnley understood the hip extremely well and worked out the details for better biomaterials and improved bio mechanics to establish low-friction arthroplasty. He introduced the use of bone cement (methyl methacrylate) to better seal the im plants in the femur and the acetabulum.1,4,5,9,13 He made joint re placement a practical and reproducible reality, in stitu ting innovations that endure to the present.
