Cementless femoral component designs supplemented with hydroxyapatite (HA) coating have been hypothesised to enhance osseointegration, thereby improving stability and clinical outcomes. We herein offer interim results at 5 years from a prospective, multi-centre study of a femoral stem (SL-PLUS™ Hip Stem Prosthesis), forged from titanium alloy (Ti6Al7Nb) and consisting of a titanium plasma sprayed coating (0.3mm) with an additional 0.05mm layer of HA. Investigators at 2 centres enrolled patients between 18–75 years of age who underwent primary total hip arthroplasty (THA) with this HA-coated stem. The study's primary outcome was the clinical efficacy of the stem, as measured by the Harris Hip Score (HHS), Western Ontario & McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis (WOMAC) Score calculated out of Hip Disability and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (HOOS), and the EuroQol EQ-5D-3L index score and visual analogue scale (VAS). Its secondary outcomes included a radiographic assessment of implant position and fixation, and overall safety, as measured by intraoperative/early postoperative complications and survivorship calculated using Kaplan-Meier estimates.INTRODUCTION
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