Total hip arthroplasty following Girdlestone arthroplasty.

BACKGROUND

Complications associated with re-implantation of total hip arthroplasty (THA) after resection arthroplasty for the treatment of primary septic hip arthritis or infected THA and bipolar hemiarthroplasty (BHA) are not well-documented. Furthermore, no comparison has been made between septic arthritis (SA) and infected THA and BHA. We divided subjects into two groups for evaluation: a SA group and an infected THA or BHA group.

METHODS

Nineteen hips in 19 patients (12 in the SA group, 7 in the infected THA or BHA group) with an average of 77 months of follow-up from the time of re-implantation THA were retrospectively evaluated.

RESULTS

The average Japanese Orthopaedic Association hip score improved from 50 points (range, 30 to 73 points) preoperatively to 80 points (range: 64 to 96 points) at the time of the final follow-up (p < 0.01). Intra- and postoperative complications occurred in 11 cases, including intraoperative fracture in 1 hip, deep infection in 6 hips, dislocation in 7 hips, and septic loosening of acetabular component in 2 hips. Following re-implantation, further surgical revision was required in four cases. Two revisions were performed for recurrent infection: one patient had recurrent dislocation of one hip, and one patient had recurrent infection and dislocation. The number of hips with relapsed infection in the infected THA or BHA group (5 hips) was significantly higher than that in the SA group (1 hip) (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Re-implantation after septic hip arthritis or infected THA or BHA was an effective treatment for improving the activity of daily life, especially the gait function. Furthermore, 94.7% of patients were free of infection at the latest follow-up. However, the rate of recurrence of infection was 31.6%, and re-implantation after resection arthroplasty following infected THA or BHA led to a lower rate of infection control than that after primary SA.