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Published Thursday, Feb. 09, 2012

LONDON, February 9, 2012 -PRNewswire/ – Smith & Nephew (NYSE:SNN; LSE:SN), the global medical technology business,
today announced the results of a new study for its BIRMINGHAM HIP™
Resurfacing (BHR) System. The study, carried out at the request of the FDA,
followed the progress of the first 400 BHR patients in the United Kingdom
and found that after 10 years, 99% were either satisfied or extremely
satisfied with their BHR procedure.

“These results further exemplify why the BHR Hip is unlike any other
metal-on-metal implant,” says John Soto, Senior Vice President for Smith &
Nephew’s Global Hip Franchise. “Not only does the BHR Hip offer all the
advantages of hip resurfacing, including bone-conservation, greater range of
motion and decreased risk of dislocation, but it does so while maintaining
implant survivorship rates that are on par with, or in some patient
populations even better than, traditional total hip replacement which has
long been considered the most successful orthopaedic surgical procedure for
relieving chronic pain.”

In addition to patient satisfaction, the 10-year BHR data showed:

• The Oswestry Modified Harris Hip Score (OMHHS) averaged 92.5 points
  – demonstrating excellent long-term clinical implant function.[i]

• The implant survival rate according to the Kaplan-Meier analysis was
  95.9%  – well exceeding the 10-year survivorship threshold of 90% for
  implants as established by the National Institute for Health and
  Clinical Science (NICE)[ii]

• A radiographic success rate of 99.7% was observed by independent
  radiographic review.

Recently, several metal-on-metal hip implants have been taken off the
market by other device companies due to higher than expected failure rates
and increasing patient safety concerns. The latest results show that the BHR
Hip stands apart from these and many other metal-on-metal resurfacing
devices. Key features of the BHR Hip that contribute to this success include
its distinctive metallurgy and its sophisticated design geometry.

The BHR Hip has a distinctive metallurgy heritage which goes back more
than 30 years and includes first-generation metal-on-metal materials. In
particular, the BHR Hip is produced using the “As Cast” process which
maintains the quantity and quality of carbides in the metal and thereby
creates a metal with high wear resistance. Additionally, the BHR Hip’s
design geometry replicates the natural hip’s ability to pull the body’s own
joint fluids into the space between the ball and socket.

Much like the lubricating barrier in a healthy hip, BHR’s  geometry
creates a natural fluid layer between the femoral head and the cup that the
two metal surfaces glide across during physical activity. Without this
lubrication, higher metal wear occurs and the likelihood of premature
failure increases. New Clinical Results Further Distance the BIRMINGHAM HIP™ Resurfacing System From Failed Metal-on-Metal Hip Implants

“The fact is that the BHR Hip is not like other metal-on-metal hip
implants,” adds Soto. “It really is in a class all its own – it’s safe and
effective, and is the best choice for the right patient.”

The 10-year study sample, carried out at the request of the FDA, was
comprised of patients implanted by the primary investigator and BHR design
surgeon Derek McMinn, MD FRCS of The McMinn Centre in Birmingham, England.
The study included 258 males and 142 females who were implanted either
unilaterally or bilaterally and had an average age of 53.2 years (range:
23-84 years).

About the Birmingham Hip Resurfacing implant

While the BHR implant closely matches the size of a patient’s natural
femoral head (hip ball), it is substantially larger than the femoral head of
a traditional total hip replacement implant. This increased size translates
to greater stability in the new joint, and it decreases the chance of
dislocation of the implant after surgery. Dislocation is a leading cause of
implant failure after total hip replacement.

Total hip replacement involves the removal of the entire femoral head and
neck. The BHR technique, however, leaves the head and neck untouched. It is
this neck length and angle that determines the natural length of a patient’s
leg after surgery, and since it is not removed and replaced with an
artificial device during the resurfacing procedure, there is a greater
likelihood of maintaining accurate leg length.

To read more clinical test results of the Birmingham Hip,
click here.

About Smith & Nephew

Smith & Nephew is a global medical technology business dedicated to
helping improve people’s lives.  With leadership positions in Orthopaedic
Reconstruction, Advanced Wound Management, Sports Medicine, Trauma and
Clinical Therapies, Smith & Nephew has almost 11,000 employees and a
presence in more than 90 countries. Annual sales in 2011 were nearly $4.3
billion.  Smith & Nephew is a member of the FTSE100 (LSE: SN, NYSE: SNN).

Trademark of Smith & Nephew.  Certain marks registered US Patent and
Trademark Office.

[i] Harris Hip Score is a tool for the evaluation of how a patient is
doing after their hip is replaced. Based on a total of 100 points possible,
each question (pain, function, functional activity and physical exam) is
awarded a certain number of points based on how it is answered. The score is
reported as 90-100 for excellent results, 80-89 for good results, 70-79 for
fair results, 60-69 for poor. Any score below 60 is considered a failed
result

[ii] National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE): Guidance for the
Selection of Prostheses for Total Hip Replacement, 2000

SOURCE Smith & Nephew