“…In January 1994, the registration was extended to include information on all types of joint replacement performed in Norway (Furnes et al 1996). In accordance with the main objective of the NAR, the reported data has been used extensively to assess the survival of joint replacements (Engesaeter et al 1992, Havelin et al 1993, 1995a, b, c, 1999, Espehaug et al 1995, 1997a, b, 1998, Havelin 1995, Furnes et al 1996a, b, 1997a, b, Skeide et al 1996, Espehaug 1998a, b, Flugsrud et al 2002, Furnes 2002, Lie 2002, Byström et al 2003, Småbrekke et al 2004). National reports with mainly descriptive statistics are also published annually (http://www.haukeland.no/nrl), and each hospital is given individual information regarding its annual activity and the quality of the surgery performed locally.…”