"Total Hip Replacement"by Peter Ochsner and his colleagues is a unique, exem plary, instructive and valuable addition to the world ofsurgery. Shortly after taking charge of the newly established department for orthopaedic surgery in Liestal in June 1984, the new medical director, Peter E. Ochsner, decided to document alltotalhip replacement operations prospectively and then follow these up regularly over a minimum period of 10 years. The former director of the surgical clinic, Professor Hans Willenegger, had previously established a documentation secretariat. The documentation system selected...