Abstract
We determined the 10 year life expectancy of 5,831 patients who had undergone 6,653 elective primary total hip replacements (THR) at a regional orthopaedic centre between April 1993 and October 2004. Using Hospital, General Practitioner (GP) and the local health authority’s records, we determined dates of deaths for all those who had undergone surgery during this period.
The mean age at operation was 73 (13–96) with a male to female ratio of 2:3. Of those with 10 year follow up 29.5% had died a mean of 5.6 (0–11.1) years after surgery. Using Kaplan Meier curves, 10-year survivorship was 89% in patients under 65 years at surgery, 75% in patients aged between 65 – 74 years and 51% in patients over 75.
The standardised mortality rates (SMR) were significantly higher than expected for patients under 45 years, 20% higher for those between 45 and 64 years and progressively less than expected for patients aged 65 and over.
The survivorship of cemented hip arthroplasties (derived from the Swedish Arthroplasty Register 2004) exceeds patients’ life expectancy in those over the age of 60 in our area suggesting that this is the procedure of choice in this population.
Correspondence should be addressed to Mr John Hodgkinson, BHS, c/o BOA, The Royal College of Surgeons, 35–43 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London WC2A 3PE.
