The Pipino prosthesis was introduced as an alternative to hip resurfacing because of its bone preserving capability. Preserving the femoral neck to a greater extent saves valuable bonestock for possible revision procedures. The stem (proximal 2/3) and acetabular cup are hydroxyapatite coated. Bearings were all either ceramic or metal on polyethylene. All procedures were performed or directly supervised by the senior author.

Patients in the cohort were assessed pre-operatively, in the short term and the medium term using the Harris Hip Score(HHS). Hip radiographs were performed at medium term follow-up to assess for radiological signs of aseptic loosening.

The study is based on a cohort of 70 patients, 34 male and 36 female with mean age of 52 (range 13-71). Followed up over a mean period of 43 months (range 17-60). 70 patients were contacted and 64 patients were reviewed. Four patients were lost to follow-up. Indications for surgery were Osteoarthritis (56); Rheumatoid arthritis (8); AVN (3); SUFE (2); Perthes (2); DDH (1); Psoriatic Arthropathy (1).

The cohort’s preoperative HHS showed a mean 50.1 (range 25-88). This increased to a mean of 95.9 (range 55-100) in the short term review period, during the medium term review the mean 93.6 (range 63-100). With 82% of patients in the excellent group and 88% good to excellent group.

At the final review there was one case of aseptic loosening (Cup) which required revision surgery. There were 2 dislocations and one intraoperative lateral femoral wall fracture and no cases of superficial or deep infection.

In conclusion we believe that the Pipino collum femo-ris preserving total hip arthroplasty has excellent short and medium term results.