Patrick M. Sullivan

Unicompartmental knee replacement. A minimum 15 year followup study.

One hundred forty Marmor cemented unicompartmental knee replacements were inserted in 103 patients between 1975 and 1982. Fifty-two patients were women and 51 were men. One hundred twenty-five were medial compartment knee replacements and 15 were lateral knee replacements. At minimum 15 year followup 34 patients with 48 knee replacements were living; only four patients with four knee replacements were lost to followup. Average preoperative and final followup Hospital for Special Surgery knee scores were 57 and 82 points, respectively for the knees of living patients. Average preoperative and final followup Knee Society clinical and Knee Society functional scores were 31 and 42, and 85 and 71 points, respectively. For all knees, 10.2% (14 knees) were revised [4.4% (six knees) for tibial loosening, 5.1% (seven knees) for disease progression, and .7% (one knee) for pain]. For patients living 15 years, 12.5% (six knees) were revised [2.1% (one knee) for tibial loosening, and 10.4% (five knees) for disease progression]. Revision for failure of fixation of these unicompartmental replacements was comparable with that reported for fixed bearing total knee replacement. Disease progression (46%; 62 of 136 knees) and tibial subsidence with wear (10.4%; 15 of 136 knees, five of which required revision) were the major long term problems in this group of patients.

Cemented rotating-platform total knee replacement. A nine to twelve-year follow-up study.

Background: Although the LCS (low contact stress) rotating-platform mobile-bearing knee replacement has been used extensively, there have been few intermediate or long-term clinical and radiographic follow-up studies evaluating the device. The purpose of this study was to report the nine to twelve-year results of a consecutive series of patients who had a primary total knee replacement performed with this device. Methods: Between November 1985 and November 1988, the senior author (R. C. J.) performed 119 consecutive total knee arthroplasties in eighty-six patients with LCS rotating-platform femoral and tibial components and a Townley all-polyethylene dome patellar component. All components were fixed with cement. The average age of the patients at the time of the operation was seventy years (range, thirty-seven to eighty-eight years). Fifty-two patients (seventy-six knees) were female, and thirty-four patients (forty-three knees) were male. The patients were evaluated with clinical knee ratings and radiographic analysis nine to twelve years following the knee replacement. Results: At the time of the nine to twelve-year follow-up, sixty-four patients (eighty-six knees) were alive, eighteen patients (twenty-eight knees) had died, and four patients (five knees) had been lost to follow-up. Of the 114 knees in the eighty-two patients for whom the final outcome was known, none required a reoperation and none had a dislocation of the mobile-bearing prosthesis. For the forty-five patients (sixty-six knees) who returned for final clinical and radiographic follow-up examinations at nine to twelve years, the average clinical and functional Knee Society ratings were 30 points (range, 2 to 70 points) and 44 points (range, 0 to 80 points) preoperatively and 90 points (range, 63 to 102 points) and 75 points (range, 30 to 100 points) at the final follow-up evaluation. The average Hospital for Special Surgery knee rating was 57 points (range, 28 to 80 points) preoperatively and 84 points (range, 59 to 97 points) at the final follow-up evaluation. The average active range of knee flexion was from 0 degrees (range, 0 to 10 degrees) to 102 degrees (range, 15 to 120 degrees) at the final follow-up evaluation. Seven of the sixty-six knees were painful anteriorly. There was no periprosthetic osteolysis and no evidence of loosening on follow-up radiographs. Conclusions: After nine to twelve years of follow-up, the cemented LCS rotating-platform knee replacement was found to be performing well, with durable clinical and radiographic results.

Results Of Charnley Total Hip Arthroplasty At A Minimum Of Thirty Years: A Concise Follow-up Of A Previous Report*

The purpose of the current study was to update the results of a prospective, single-surgeon series of primary Charnley total hip arthroplasties performed with cement. This investigation is one of the first studies in which hips treated with total hip arthroplasty with cement were followed for a minimum of thirty years. Twenty-seven patients (thirty-four [10.3%] of the hips in the initial study group) were alive at a minimum of thirty years postoperatively. These patients served as the focus of the present study. Revision because of aseptic loosening of the acetabular component was performed in 7.3% (twenty-three) of the hips from the original study group (excluding those revised because of infection or dislocation) and 26% (eight) of the hips in the living cohort. Revision because of aseptic loosening of the femoral component was performed in 3.2% (ten) of the hips from the original study group (excluding those revised because of infection or dislocation) and 10% (three) of the hips in the living patients. Since the twenty-five-year review, three hips were revised (one because of acetabular loosening, one because of femoral loosening, and one because of instability). This end-result study demonstrated the remarkable durability of cemented Charnley total hip replacements over a span of three decades, with 88% of the original prostheses intact at the time of the final follow-up or at the patients death.

The John Insall Award: unicompartmental knee replacement: a minimum twenty-one-year followup, end-result study.

We report the results of a minimum 21-year followup of a consecutive series of 103 patients who had 136 Marmor cemented unicompartmental knee replacements done between 1975 and 1982. Patients were evaluated clinically and radiographically. At minimum 21-year followup 14 patients (19 knees) were alive, 87 patients (115 knees) had died, and only two patients (two knees) were lost to followup. The average age at surgery was 70.9 years. The average followup Hospital for Special Surgery knee score was 58. The average Knee Society final followup clinical and functional scores averaged 72 and 53 points, respectively. Nineteen knees (14%) were revised during the 21-year followup period: nine for progression of disease, eight for loosening, and two for pain, at an average of 10.6 years (range, 1-22 years). Of the 19 knees in the 14 patients who were still alive at final followup, seven (37%) were revised: two for tibial loosening, four for disease progression, and one for pain. Unicompartmental knee replacements in this relatively older age group of patients performed well at minimum 21-year followup. Although we are encouraged by these results, only 22% were done in patients who were younger than 65 years at the time of surgery and the results in this group were significantly less durable. Level of Evidence: Therapeutic study, Level IV-1 (case series). See the Guidelines for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

Cementless acetabular fixation at fifteen years. A comparison with the same surgeon's results following acetabular fixation with cement.

BACKGROUND Loosening of the acetabular component is the major long-term problem associated with total hip arthroplasty with cement. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the minimum thirteen-year results associated with cementless acetabular components that had been inserted by a single surgeon and to compare them with the results associated with cemented acetabular components that had been inserted by the same surgeon. METHODS One hundred and twenty consecutive, nonselected primary total hip replacements were performed in 108 patients with use of a Harris-Galante-I cementless acetabular component and a cemented femoral component with a 28-mm head. The patients were evaluated clinically with use of a standard terminology questionnaire, and they were evaluated radiographically for loosening, component migration, wear, and osteolysis. The rates of revision for aseptic loosening and radiographic evidence of loosening for this cohort were compared with the rates for four previously reviewed consecutive series of hips in which the acetabular component had been inserted with cement. All patients were managed by the same surgeon, were followed for thirteen to fifteen years, and were evaluated with use of the same two criteria (revision and loosening) as the end points for Kaplan-Meier analysis. RESULTS Sixty-six patients (seventy-two hips) were living and forty-two patients (forty-eight hips) had died after thirteen to fifteen years of follow-up. No acetabular component had been revised because of aseptic loosening, and no acetabular component had migrated. With revision of the acetabular component for any reason as the end point, the survival rate was 81% +/- 8% at fifteen years. With revision of the acetabular component for clinical failure (osteolysis, wear, loosening, or dislocation) as the end point, the survival rate was 94% +/- 8% at fifteen years. Among the seventy hips with at least thirteen years of radiographic follow-up, five had pelvic osteolysis and three had had revision of a well-fixed acetabular component because of pelvic osteolysis secondary to polyethylene wear. The mean linear wear rate was 0.15 mm/yr (0.12 mm/yr when one outlier was excluded). CONCLUSIONS In terms of fixation, Harris-Galante-I cementless acetabular components performed better than did cemented 22-mm-inner-diameter Charnley acetabular components as well as 28-mm-inner-diameter all-polyethylene and metal-backed acetabular components that had been inserted by the same surgeon. However, the rate of wear was greater in association with the Harris-Galante-I cementless components than it was in association with the Charnley cemented all-polyethylene components.

Revision of a cemented acetabular component to a cementless acetabular component. A ten to fourteen-year follow-up study.

Background: Although cementless acetabular components are routinely used in revision hip surgery, few investigators have evaluated the retention and efficacy of these components in the long term. In the current study, the clinical and radiographic outcomes of a series of arthroplasties performed by one surgeon with a cementless acetabular component were assessed at a minimum of ten years. Methods: From 1986 through 1988, sixty‐one consecutive revision total hip arthroplasties were performed in fifty-five patients because of aseptic failure of one or both components of a prosthesis in which both components had been cemented. Twenty-eight patients (thirty-two hips) were alive at a mean of 12.9 years (range, 11.5 to 14.3 years) after the operation. In all of the patients, the acetabular component was revised to a porous‐coated Harris‐Galante component inserted without cement, and the femoral component was revised to an Iowa component affixed with contemporary cementing techniques. The hips were evaluated clinically and radiographically at a minimum of ten years subsequent to the index revision. No hips were lost to follow‐up. Results: None of the acetabular components required revision because of aseptic loosening. Two hips (3%) demonstrated radiographic evidence of aseptic loosening of the acetabular component. The polyethylene liner was exchanged during the follow‐up period in eight hips. Conclusion: After a minimum of ten years of follow‐up, cementless acetabular fixation in revision hip arthroplasty had produced durable results that were markedly better than those reported for acetabular fixation with cement.

Results of cemented femoral revision total hip arthroplasty using improved cementing techniques.

Seventy-nine consecutive femoral component revision total hip arthroplasties done in 73 patients from 1977 to 1983 using a distal intramedullary cement plug and a cement gun delivery system were evaluated to determine if improved results were obtained with newer cementing techniques. At a minimum 10-year followup interval, only 1 patient was not available for followup and 47 hips had minimum 10-year followup radiographs. The incidence of femoral rerevision for aseptic loosening was 9.5% for those hips with minimum 10-year followup and 5.4% for the entire group. The incidence of radiographic femoral failure (defined as a revision or definite or probable loosening) was 26.1% for those hips followed for a minimum of 10 years and 16.3% for the entire group. Compared with historical controls, these results represent an improvement over those reported with the use of earlier cementing techniques.

Results of Charnley total hip arthroplasty with use of improved femoral cementing techniques. a concise follow-up, at a minimum of twenty-five years, of a previous report.

UNLABELLED The current study was performed to determine the status, at a minimum of twenty-five years, of a prospective, single-surgeon series of patients treated with primary Charnley total hip arthroplasty with a contemporary femoral cementing technique that included use of a distal cement plug and a retrograde cement-delivery system. Since our review at a minimum of twenty years postoperatively, two primary total hip prostheses were revised (one because of acetabular loosening, and one because of femoral loosening). Of the original cohort of 357 hips (320 patients), ten (2.8%) had revision of the femoral stem because of aseptic loosening. Forty-nine patients (fifty-two hips, 14.6%) who had been in the initial study group were still living at the time of the present review. Five hips (10%) in living patients had required a femoral revision because of aseptic loosening. Including those that were revised, eight femoral components (17%) in living patients were seen to be loose radiographically. Although this study demonstrates the remarkable durability of the femoral fixation obtained with the polished flatback Charnley prosthesis and the contemporary cementing technique, there was some deterioration of the results with time. These results provide a standard for comparison with cementless fixation after hips treated with that technique have been followed for a similar duration. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Therapeutic Level IV. See Instructions to Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

Prevention of dislocation after hip arthroplasty: Lessons from long-term followup

Regarding dislocation after total hip arthroplasty, prevention is worth an ounce of cure. The current authors evaluated dislocation after total hip arthroplasty during the 26-year practice of one surgeon to identify potential variables that can contribute to the prevention of dislocation. Between 1970 and 1996, dislocation after total hip replacement occurred after 7.2% of primary hip arthroplasty procedures (298 of 4164 primary hip replacements) and 11.2% of revision hip arthroplasty procedures (90 of 803 revision hip replacements). Significant findings included an increase in dislocation when 22-mm modular femoral heads were used and a decrease in dislocation after revision for dislocation when constrained liners were used. An additional finding was that 26% of first time dislocations occurred more than 2 years after surgery. Concerning prevention of dislocation, small head modular femoral components should be used cautiously, and constrained liners should be considered in complex revision cases. Patients should be counseled concerning the potential for dislocation many years after their arthroplasty.

Late infection after total hip replacement, caused by an oral organism after dental manipulation. A case report.

no controlled studies to substantiate the practice. Several reports have suggested that dissemination of oral flora after dental manipulation might be responsible for infection about total joint replacements79, and other studies have suggested that antibiotic prophylaxis for dental manipulation in a patient who has a total joint replacement is unnecessary34. We believe that the case of our patient supports the argument that dental manipulation can lead to infection with an oral organism in the area of the total joint replacement.