We assessed the long-term results of 58 Souter-Strathclyde total elbow replacements in 49 patients with rheumatoid arthritis. The mean length of follow-up was 9.5 years (0.7 to 16.7). The mean pre-operative Mayo Elbow Performance Score was 30 (15 to 80) and at final follow-up was 82 (60 to 95). A total of 13 elbows (22.4%) were revised, ten (17.2%) for aseptic loosening, one (1.7%) for instability, one (1.7%) for secondary loosening after fracture, and one elbow (1.7%) was removed because of deep infection. The Kaplan-Meier survival rate was 70% and 53% at ten and 16 years, respectively. Failure of the ulnar component was found to be the main problem in relation to the loosening. Anterior transposition of the ulnar nerve had no influence on ulnar nerve paresthaesiae in these patients.
We have evaluated the results of total hip replacement in patients with congenital hip disease using 46 cemented all-polyethylene Charnley acetabular components implanted with the cotyloplasty technique in 34 patients (group A), and compared them with 47 metal-backed cementless acetabular components implanted without bone grafting in 33 patients (group B). Patients in group A were treated between 1988 and 1993 and those in group B between 1990 and 1995. The mean follow-up for group A was 16.6 years (12 to 18) and the mean follow-up for group B was 13.4 years (10 to 16). Revision for aseptic loosening was undertaken in 15 hips (32.6%) in group A and in four hips (8.5%) in group B. When liner exchange was included, a total of 13 hips were revised in group B (27.7%). The mean polyethylene wear was 0.11 mm/yr (0.002 to 0.43) and 0.107 mm/yr (0 to 0.62) for groups A and B, respectively. Polyethylene wear in group A was associated with linear osteolysis, and in group B with expansile osteolysis. In patients with congenital hip disease, when 80% cover of the implant can be obtained, a cementless acetabular component appears to be acceptable and provides durable fixation. However, because of the type of osteolysis arising with these devices, early exchange of a worn liner is recommended before extensive bone loss makes revision surgery more complicated.
Metal-on-metal hip resurfacing was performed for developmental dysplasia in 96 hips in 85 patients, 78 in women and 18 in men, with a mean age at the time of surgery of 43 years (14 to 65). These cases were matched for age, gender, operating surgeon and date of operation with a group of patients with primary osteoarthritis who had been treated by resurfacing, to provide a control group of 96 hips (93 patients). A clinical and radiological follow-up study was performed. The dysplasia group were followed for a mean of 4.4 years (2.0 to 8.5) and the osteoarthritis group for a mean of 4.5 years (2.2 to 9.4). Of the dysplasia cases, 17 (18%) were classified as Crowe grade III or IV. There were five (5.2%) revisions in the dysplasia group and none in the osteoarthritic patients. Four of the failures were due to acetabular loosening and the other sustained a fracture of the neck of femur. There was a significant difference in survival between the two groups (p = 0.02). The five-year survival was 96.7% (95% confidence interval 90.0 to 100) for the dysplasia group and 100% (95% confidence interval 100 to 100) for the osteoarthritic group. There was no significant difference in the median Oxford hip score between the two groups at any time during the study. The medium-term results of metal-on-metal hip resurfacing in all grades of developmental dysplasia are encouraging, although they are significantly worse than in a group of matched patients with osteoarthritis treated in the same manner.
The Motec cementless modular metal-on-metal ball-and-socket
wrist arthroplasty was implanted in 16 wrists with scaphoid nonunion
advanced collapse (SNAC; grades 3 or 4) and 14 wrists with scapholunate
advanced collapse (SLAC) in 30 patients (20 men) with severe (grades
3 or 4) post-traumatic osteoarthritis of the wrist. The mean age of
the patients was 52 years (31 to 71). All prostheses integrated
well radiologically. At a mean follow-up of 3.2 years (1.1 to 6.1)
no luxation or implant breakage occurred. Two wrists were converted
to an arthrodesis for persistent pain. Loosening occurred in one
further wrist at five years post-operatively. The remainder demonstrated close
bone–implant contact. The clinical results were good, with markedly
decreased Disabilities of the Arm Shoulder and Hand (DASH) and pain
scores, and increased movement and grip strength. No patient used
analgesics and most had returned to work. Good short-term function was achieved using this wrist arthroplasty
in a high-demand group of patients with post-traumatic osteoarthritis.
New brands of joint prosthesis are released for general implantation with limited evidence of their long-term performance in patients. The CUSUM continuous monitoring method is a statistical testing procedure which could be used to provide prospective evaluation of brands as soon as implantation in patients begins and give early warning of poor performance. We describe the CUSUM and illustrate the potential value of this monitoring tool by applying it retrospectively to the 3M Capital Hip experience. The results show that if the clinical data and methodology had been available, the CUSUM would have given an alert to the underperformance of this prosthesis almost four years before the issue of a Hazard Notice by the Medical Devices Agency. This indicates that the CUSUM can be a valuable tool in monitoring joint prostheses, subject to timely and complete collection of data. Regional or national joint registries provide an opportunity for future centralised, continuous monitoring of all hip and knee prostheses using these techniques.
Medium-term survivorship of the Oxford phase
3 unicompartmental knee replacement (UKR) has not yet been established
in an Asian population. We prospectively evaluated the outcome of
400 phase 3 Oxford UKRs in 320 Korean patients with a mean age at
the time of operation of 69 years (48 to 82). The mean follow-up
was 5.2 years (1 to 10). Clinical and radiological assessment was
carried out pre- and post-operatively. At five years, the mean Knee
Society knee and functional scores had increased significantly from
56.2 (30 to 91) pre-operatively to 87.2 (59 to 98) (p = 0.034) and
from 59.2 (30 to 93) to 88.3 (50 to 100) (p = 0.021), respectively.
The Oxford knee score increased from a mean of 25.8 (12 to 39) pre-operatively
to 39.8 (25 to 58) at five years (p = 0.038). The ten-year survival
rate was 94% (95% confidence interval 90.1 to 98.0). A total of
14 UKRs (3.5%) required revision. The most common reason for revision
was dislocation of the bearing in 12 (3%). Conversion to a total
knee replacement was required in two patients who developed osteoarthritis
of the lateral compartment. This is the largest published series of UKR in Korean patients.
It shows that the mid-term results after a minimally invasive Oxford
phase 3 UKR can yield satisfactory clinical and functional results
in this group of patients.
Despite excellent results, the use of cemented
total hip replacement (THR) is declining. This retrospective cohort study
records survival time to revision following primary cemented THR
using the most common combination of components that accounted for
almost a quarter of all cemented THRs, exploring risk factors independently associated
with failure. All patients with osteoarthritis who had an Exeter
V40/Contemporary THR (Stryker) implanted before 31 December 2010
and recorded in the National Joint Registry for England and Wales
were included in the analysis. Cox’s proportional hazard models
were used to analyse the extent to which risk of revision was related
to patient, surgeon and implant covariates, with a significance
threshold of p <
0.01. A total of 34 721 THRs were included in
the study. The overall seven-year rate of revision for any reason
was 1.70% (99% confidence interval (CI) 1.28 to 2.12). In the final
adjusted model the risk of revision was significantly higher in
THRs with the Contemporary hooded component (hazard ratio (HR) 1.88,
p <
0.001) than with the flanged version, and in smaller head
sizes (<
28 mm) compared with 28 mm diameter heads (HR 1.50,
p = 0.005). The seven-year revision rate was 1.16% (99% CI 0.69
to 1.63) with a 28 mm diameter head and flanged component. The overall
risk of revision was independent of age, gender, American Society
of Anesthesiologists grade, body mass index, surgeon volume, surgical
approach, brand of cement/presence of antibiotic, femoral head material
(stainless steel/alumina) and stem taper size/offset. However, the
risk of revision for dislocation was significantly higher with a
‘plus’ offset head (HR 2.05, p = 0.003) and a hooded acetabular component
(HR 2.34, p <
0.001). In summary, we found that there were significant differences
in failure between different designs of acetabular component and
sizes of femoral head after adjustment for a range of covariates.
We present a comparison of patient-reported outcomes
(PROMs) in relation to patient age, in patients who had received
a total (TKR) or unicompartmental knee replacement (UKR). The outcome
was evaluated using the Oxford knee score (OKS), EuroQol (EQ-5D)
and satisfaction scores. Patients aged 65 to 84 years demonstrated
better pre-operative function scores than those aged <
65 years
(OKS, p = 0.03; EQ-5D, p = 0.048) and those aged
≥ 85 years (OKS, p = 0.03). Post-operative scores were comparable
across age groups, but a linear trend for greater post-operative
improvement in OKS and EQ-5D was seen with decreasing age (p <
0.033). The overall mean satisfaction score at six months was 84.9,
but those aged <
55 years exhibited a lower mean level of satisfaction (78.3)
compared with all other age groups (all p <
0.031). The cumulative
overall two-year revision rate was 1.3%. This study demonstrates
that good early outcomes, as measured by the OKS and EQ-5D, can
be anticipated following knee replacement regardless of the patient’s
age, although younger patients gain greater improvement. However,
the lower satisfaction in those aged
<
55 years is a concern, and suggests that outcome is not fully
encapsulated by the OKS and EQ-5D evaluation, and raises the question
whether the OKS alone is an appropriate measure of pain and function
in younger, more active individuals. Cite this article:
We studied prospectively the long-term results of the Charnley Elite-Plus femoral stem in 184 consecutive young patients (194 hips). There were 130 men and 54 women with a mean age of 49.1 years (21 to 60). The predominant diagnosis was osteonecrosis of the femoral head (63.6%, 117 patients). Clinical and radiological evaluation was undertaken at each follow-up. The mean follow-up was 11.2 years (10 to 12). The mean pre-operative Harris hip score was 43.4 (12 to 49) which improved to 91 (59 to 100) at the final follow-up. The survival of the femoral stem at 12 years was 99% with revision as the end-point. The mean annual linear wear of the polyethylene liner was 0.17 mm (0.13 to 0.22). The prevalence of acetabular osteolysis was 10.8% (21 hips) and osteolysis of the calcar femorale 12.9% (25 hips). A third-generation cementing technique, accurate alignment of the stem and the use of a 22 mm zirconia head were important factors in the prevention of aseptic loosening of the Elite Plus femoral stem in these high-risk young patients.
We prospectively followed 191 consecutive collarless
polished tapered (CPT) femoral stems, implanted in 175 patients
who had a mean age at operation of 64.5 years (21 to 85). At a mean
follow-up of 15.9 years (14 to 17.5), 86 patients (95 hips) were
still alive. The fate of all original stems is known. The 16-year
survivorship with re-operation for any reason was 80.7% (95% confidence
interval 72 to 89.4). There was no loss to follow-up, with clinical
data available on all 95 hips and radiological assessment performed
on 90 hips (95%). At latest follow-up, the mean Harris hip score
was 78 (28 to 100) and the mean Oxford hip score was 36 (15 to 48).
Stems subsided within the cement mantle, with a mean subsidence
of 2.1 mm (0.4 to 19.2). Among the original cohort, only one stem
(0.5%) has been revised due to aseptic loosening. In total seven
stems were revised for any cause, of which four revisions were required
for infection following revision of the acetabular component. A
total of 21 patients (11%) required some sort of revision procedure;
all except three of these resulted from failure of the acetabular
component. Cemented acetabular components had a significantly lower
revision burden (three hips, 2.7%) than Harris Galante uncemented
components (17 hips, 21.8%) (p <
0.001). The CPT stem continues to provide excellent radiological and
clinical outcomes at 15 years following implantation. Its results
are consistent with other polished tapered stem designs.
We report the clinical and radiographic outcome of a consecutive series of 138 hydroxyapatite-coated total knee replacements with a mean follow-up of 11 years (10 to 13). The patients were entered into a prospective study and all living patients (76 knees) were evaluated. The Hospital for Special Surgery knee score was obtained for comparison with the pre-operative situation. No patient was lost to follow-up. Radiographic assessment revealed no loosening. Seven prostheses have been revised, giving a cumulative survival rate of 93% at 13 years. We believe this to be the longest follow-up report available for an hydroxyapatite-coated knee replacement and the first for this design of Insall-Burstein II knee.
We retrospectively reviewed 101 consecutive patients
with 114 femoral tumours treated by massive bone allograft at our
institution between 1986 and 2005. There were 49 females and 52
males with a mean age of 20 years (4 to 74). At a median follow-up
of 9.3 years (2 to 19.8), 36 reconstructions (31.5%) had failed.
The allograft itself failed in 27 reconstructions (24%). Mechanical complications such as delayed union, fracture and
failure of fixation were studied. The most adverse factor on the
outcome was the use of intramedullary nails, followed by post-operative
chemotherapy, resection length >
17 cm and age >
18 years at the
time of intervention. The simultaneous use of a vascularised fibular
graft to protect the allograft from mechanical complications improved
the outcome, but the use of intramedullary cementing was not as
successful. In order to improve the strength of the reconstruction and to
advance the biology of host–graft integration, we suggest avoiding
the use of intramedullary nails and titanium plates, but instead
using stainless steel plates, as these gave better results. The
use of a supplementary vascularised fibular graft should be strongly
considered in adult patients with resection >
17 cm and in those
who require post-operative chemotherapy.
Current analysis of unicondylar knee replacements
(UKRs) by national registries is based on the pooled results of medial
and lateral implants. Consequently, little is known about the differential
performance of medial and lateral replacements and the influence
of each implant type within these pooled analyses. Using data from
the National Joint Registry for England and Wales (NJR) we aimed
to determine the proportion of UKRs implanted on the lateral side
of the knee, and their survival and reason for failure compared
with medial UKRs. By combining information on the side of operation
with component details held on the NJR, we were able to determine
implant laterality (medial
We have previously described the mid- to long-term
results of conventional simple varus intertrochanteric osteotomy
for osteonecrosis of the femoral head, showing that 19 of the 26
hips had good or excellent results. We extended the follow-up to
a mean of 18.1 years (10.5 to 26) including a total of 34 hips in
28 patients, with a mean age at surgery of 33 years (19 to 53).
There were 18 men and ten women and 25 hips (74%) had a satisfactory
result with a Harris hip score ≥ 80. In all, six hips needed total
hip replacement (THR) or hemiarthroplasty. The collapse of the femoral
head or narrowing of the joint space was found to have progressed
in nine hips (26%). Leg shortening after osteotomy was a mean of
19 mm (8 to 36). With conversion to THR or hemiarthroplasty as the
endpoint, the ten-year survival rate was 88.2% (95% confidence interval
(CI) 82.7 to 93.7) and the 20-year survival rate was 79.7% (95%
CI 72.1 to 87.3); four hips were converted at ten years and other
two hips were converted at 20 years. Shortening of the leg after osteotomy remains a concern; however,
the conventional varus half-wedge osteotomy provides favourable
long-term results in hips with less than two-thirds of the medial
part of the femoral head affected by necrotic bone and with normal
bone superolaterally.
Between January 1984 and January 1986, 131 porous-coated anatomic total hip replacements were performed in 119 consecutive patients. Of these, 100 patients (110 hips) who were alive at a minimum of 18 years after replacement were included in the study. The mean age of the patients at surgery was 48.4 years and that of surviving patients at the latest follow-up was 67.8 years. The mean duration of the clinical and radiological follow-up was 19.4 years (18 to 20). The mean Harris hip score initially improved from 55 points before to 95 points at two years after operation, but subsequently decreased to 91 points after six years, 87 points after 11.2 years, and 85 points after 19.4 years. At the final follow-up, 23 hips (18%) of the entire cohort and 21% of survivors had undergone revision because of loosening or osteolysis of the acetabular component and eight hips (6%) of the entire cohort and 7% of survivors for loosening or osteolysis of the femoral component. Only four femoral components (4%) were revised for isolated aseptic loosening without osteolysis and two (2%) for recurrent dislocation. On the basis of these long-term results, the porous-coated anatomic femoral component survived for a minimum of 18 years after operation while the acetabular component was less durable. The findings identify the principles of uncemented joint replacement which can be applied to current practice.
We carried out a clinical and radiological review of 103 cementless primary hip arthroplasties with a tapered rectangular grit-blasted titanium press-fit femoral component and a threaded conical titanium acetabular component at a mean follow-up of 14.4 years (10.2 to 17.1). The mean Harris hip score at the last follow-up was 89.2 (32 to 100). No early loosening and no fracture of the implant were found. One patient needed revision surgery because of a late deep infection. In 11 hips (10.7%), the reason for revision was progressive wear of the polyethylene liner. Exchange of the acetabular component because of aseptic loosening without detectable liner wear was carried out in three hips (2.9%). After 15 years the survivorship with aseptic loosening as the definition for failure was 95.6% for the acetabular component and 100% for the femoral component.
Autologous chondrocyte implantation (ACI) and
mosaicplasty are methods of treating symptomatic articular cartilage
defects in the knee. This study represents the first long-term randomised
comparison of the two techniques in 100 patients at a minimum follow-up
of ten years. The mean age of the patients at the time of surgery was
31.3 years (16 to 49); the mean duration of symptoms pre-operatively
was 7.2 years (9 months to 20 years). The lesions were large with
the mean size for the ACI group being 440.9 mm2 (100
to 1050) and the mosaicplasty group being 399.6 mm2 (100
to 2000). Patients had a mean of 1.5 previous operations (0 to 4)
to the articular cartilage defect. Patients were assessed using
the modified Cincinnati knee score and the Stanmore-Bentley Functional Rating
system. The number of patients whose repair had failed at ten years
was ten of 58 (17%) in the ACI group and 23 of 42 (55%) in the mosaicplasty
group (p <
0.001). The functional outcome of those patients with a surviving graft
was significantly better in patients who underwent ACI compared
with mosaicplasty (p = 0.02).
We have investigated the significance of the method of treatment on the oncological and functional outcomes and on the complications in 184 patients with soft-tissue sarcomas of the adductor compartment managed at three international centres. The overall survival at five years was 65% and was related to the grade at diagnosis and the size of the tumour. There was no difference in overall survival between the three centres. There was, however, a significant difference in local control with a rate of 28% in Centre 1 compared with 10% in Centre 2 and 5% in Centre 3. The overall mean functional score using the Toronto Extremity Salvage Score in 70 patients was 77% but was significantly worse in patients with wound complications or high-grade tumours. The scores were not affected by the timing of radiotherapy or the use of muscle flaps. This large series of soft-tissue sarcomas of the adductor compartment has shown that factors influencing survival do not vary across the international boundaries studied, but that methods of treatment affect complications, local recurrence and function.
We have undertaken a prospective clinical and radiological analysis of 124 shoulder arthroplasties (113 patients) carried out for osteoarthritis. The clinical results showed improvement in the absolute Constant score and the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons score of 22 and 43, respectively. Both were statistically significant (p <
0.001). There was no significant difference in the scores after hemiarthroplasty and total arthroplasty in those patients with an intact rotator cuff. When revision was used as the end-point for survival at ten years, survival of 86%, or 90% if glenoid components made of Hylamer sterilised in air were omitted, was obtained in primary osteoarthritis. The most common cause for revision in the hemiarthroplasty group was glenoid pain at a mean of 1.5 years; in the total arthroplasty group it was loosening of the glenoid at a mean of 4.5 years. Analysis of pre-operative factors showed that the risk of gross loosening of the glenoid increased threefold when there was evidence of erosion of the glenoid at operation. Shoulder arthroplasty should not be delayed once symptomatic osteoarthritis has been established and should be undertaken before failure of the cuff or erosion of the glenoid are present.
In a randomised trial involving 598 patients
with 600 trochanteric fractures of the hip, the fractures were treated with
either a sliding hip screw (n = 300) or a Targon PF intramedullary
nail (n = 300). The mean age of the patients was 82 years (26 to
104). All surviving patients were reviewed at one year with functional
outcome assessed by a research nurse blinded to the treatment used.
The intramedullary nail was found to have a slightly increased mean
operative time (46 minutes ( In summary, both implants produced comparable results but there
was a tendency to better return of mobility for those treated with
the intramedullary nail.