It may not be possible to undertake revision total hip arthroplasty
(THA) in the presence of massive loss of acetabular bone stock using
standard cementless hemispherical acetabular components and metal
augments, as satisfactory stability cannot always be achieved. We
aimed to study the outcome using a reconstruction cage and a porous
metal augment in these patients. A total of 22 acetabular revisions in 19 patients were performed
using a combination of a reconstruction cage and porous metal augments.
The augments were used in place of structural allografts. The mean
age of the patients at the time of surgery was 70 years (27 to 85)
and the mean follow-up was 39 months (27 to 58). The mean number
of previous THAs was 1.9 (1 to 3). All patients had segmental defects
involving more than 50% of the acetabulum and seven hips had an
associated pelvic discontinuity. Aims
Patients and Methods
An uncemented hemispherical acetabular component
is the mainstay of acetabular revision and gives excellent long-term
results. Occasionally, the degree of acetabular bone loss means that a
hemispherical component will be unstable when sited in the correct
anatomical location or there is minimal bleeding host bone left
for biological fixation. On these occasions an alternative method
of reconstruction has to be used. A major column structural allograft has been shown to restore
the deficient bone stock to some degree, but it needs to be off-loaded
with a reconstruction cage to prevent collapse of the graft. The
use of porous metal augments is a promising method of overcoming
some of the problems associated with structural allograft. If the defect
is large, the augment needs to be protected by a cage to allow ingrowth
to occur. Cup-cage reconstruction is an effective method of treating
chronic pelvic discontinuity and large contained or uncontained
bone defects. This paper presents the indications, surgical techniques and
outcomes of various methods which use acetabular reconstruction
cages for revision total hip arthroplasty. Cite this article:
The role of arthroscopy in the treatment of soft-tissue
injuries associated with proximal tibial fractures remains debatable.
Our hypothesis was that MRI over-diagnoses clinically relevant associated
soft-tissue injuries. This prospective study involved 50 consecutive
patients who underwent surgical treatment for a split-depression fracture
of the lateral tibial condyle (AO/OTA type B3.1). The mean age of
patients was 50 years (23 to 86) and 27 (54%) were female. All patients
had MRI and arthroscopy. Arthroscopy identified 12 tears of the
lateral meniscus, including eight bucket-handle tears that were
sutured and four that were resected, as well as six tears of the
medial meniscus, of which five were resected. Lateral meniscal injuries
were diagnosed on MRI in four of 12 patients, yielding an overall
sensitivity of 33% (95% confidence interval (CI) 11 to 65). Specificity
was 76% (95% CI 59 to 88), with nine tears diagnosed among 38 menisci
that did not contain a tear. MRI identified medial meniscal injuries
in four of six patients, yielding an overall sensitivity of 67%
(95% CI 24 to 94). Specificity was 66% (95% CI 50 to 79), with 15
tears diagnosed in 44 menisci that did not contain tears. MRI appears to offer only a marginal benefit as the specificity
and sensitivity for diagnosing meniscal injuries are poor in patients
with a fracture. There were fewer arthroscopically-confirmed associated
lesions than reported previously in MRI studies. Cite this article:
