Abstract
Dislocation of the femoral head from the acetabular shell after total hip arthroplasty is a disturbing complication for both patient and surgeon. To prevent the dislocation, the authors developed a guide and a technique for positioning the acetabular shell. The risk of dislocation for each patient was evaluated with a scoring sheet the authors designed.
In this prospective study, total hip arthroplasties were done in 44 patients. 36 patients had degenerative coxarthritis, 3 patients had rheumatoid arthritis, and 5 patients had avascular necrosis of femoral head. Follow-up period was from 12 months to 32 months (mean 16 months). The average age of the patients at the time of operation was 62 years. The clinical results of the patients were evaluated with the Japanese Orthopaedic Association's score (JOA score). The risk of dislocation was also evaluated. In this study, the dislocation rate was 2.3per cent. This rate is lower than in previous studies by the authors.
To prevent dislocation of hip, using the author's shell positioner guide and dislocation scoring sheet might be found to be useful for patients and surgeons pending further study.
