Bipolar cemented hip hemiarthroplasty in patients with femoral neck fracture who are on hemodialysis is associated with risk of stem migration

Background and purpose Femoral neck fractures are considerably more common in patients on hemodialysis than in the general population. We determined the outcome of bipolar hemiarthroplasty for hip fracture in patients with long-term hemodialysis and compared it with that of a matched-paired group of patients with intact renal function.

Methods We analyzed 26 bipolar hemiarthroplasties in 23 hemodialysed patients with a mean age of 56 (41–78) years who were followed for mean 3.6 (1–8) years. These cases were matched for age, sex, and BMI with 26 patients with femoral neck fractures and normal renal function. The mean follow-up time in the control group was 7 (5–10) years. As primary surgery for their femoral neck fracture, all patients had a bipolar hemiarthroplasty with a 28-mm metal-polyethylene internal articulation and a cemented stem.

Results The mortality rate was 21% in the hemodialysed group and 4% in the control group (p = 0.005). The bipolar head migrated in 1 patient in the hemodialysed group but in none of the patients in the case-matched group. In the hemodialysed group, 8 stems migrated and 3 of these were revised, whereas in the control group 3 stems migrated and 2 were revised. The stem migration in the hemodialysed group was not preceded by the development of osteolysis or radiolucent lines at the bone-cement interface. The cumulative survival for prosthesis migration as endpoint was 44% at 5 years in the hemodialysed group and 96% in the control group (p = 0.03).

Interpretation The main mode of failure of cemented bipolar hemiarthroplasties in hemodialysed patients is stem migration, due to failure of the bone-cement interface.