Abstract
Introduction
Limb length discrepancy after THA can result in medicolegal litigation. It can create discomfort for the patient and potentially cause back pain or affect the longevity of the implant. Some patients tolerate the length inequality better compared to others despite difference in anatomical femoral length after surgery.
Methods and materials
We analyzed the 3D EOS images of 75 consecutive patients who underwent primary unilateral THA (27 men, 48 women). We measured the 3D length of the femur and tibia (anatomical length), the 3D global anatomical length (the sum of femur and tibia anatomical lengths), the 3D functional length (center of the femoral head to center of the ankle), femoral neck-shaft angle, hip-knee-ankle angle, knee flexum/recurvatum angle, sacral slopes and pelvic incidence. We correlated these parameters with the patient perception of the leg length.
Results
The values for leg length and pelvic parameters are shown in table 1. 37 patients had a perception of the LLD (49.3%). When the global anatomical length was shorter on the operated side, the perception of the discrepancy was observed in 56% of the cases. In case of anatomical length longer on the operated side, the perception of the discrepancy was described by the patients in 46% of the cases.
The LLD perception was correlated with difference in functional length (p=0.0001), pelvic obliquity (p=0.003) and sacral slope (p=0.023). The anatomical femoral length was not correlated with the LLD perception (p=0,008).
Discussion
The perception of LLD is a multifactorial complication. We found that the anatomical femoral length (that can be directly affected by the position of the stem) is not the only important factor. The functional length of the lower extremity which can also be affected by the knee deformities is better correlated with the LLD. The pelvic obliquity and version also affect the patient perception of the LLD.
