SURGEONS from Southampton have developed a pioneering bone repair technique that could end the need for artificial hip replacements.

Six people have undergone the procedure which uses a their own stem cells to repair damaged hip joints. Only one operation has failed.

The ground-breaking technique has been carried out at the city's general and Spire hospitals.

Doug Dunlop, one of the consultants behind the treatment which requires just "an inch cut", said if it works it will fix a hip for life.

He said it could in future be applied to knee surgery or fractures that won't heal.

Under the procedure surgeons extract bone marrow from the back of a patients' pelvis, then extract a layer of stem cells by spinning the marrow in a centrifuge.

The stem cells are then mixed with ground up bone donated from another patients discarded hip replacement.

The paste is used to replace dead bone marrow that is scooped out of the ball of a patient's degenerating hip joint.

It strengthens the joint by rejuvenate the affected bone.

Mr Dunlop said the technique was being used to treat osteonecrosis, a disease causing bone tissue to die from a loss of blood, but would not be suitable for arthritis. It could prevent thousands of people needing artificial hip replacements.

Professor Richard Oreffo of Southampton University, one of those behind the research, said the technique could be improved by replacing donated bone with an artificial material containing chemicals that promote stem cell growth.