Technical Notes and Tips: Innovative Way of Taking Bone Graft from the Femoral Head

We describe an innovative method of taking bone graft (allograft or autograft) from a femoral head using standard orthopaedic implements to hold the femoral head while coring out the bone. This overcomes the difficulty in grasping the spherical shaped head. A starter hole is made with a 3.2-mm drill bit at an angle of 45° in the proximal femoral head. The drill bit is then pushed through the head transversely. With the drill bit acting as a support, to prevent the HeyGroves retractor slipping, the femoral head is held whilst acetabular reamers core out the cancellous graft (Fig. 1).