Clinical Experience of Ganz Surgical Dislocation Approach for Metal-on-Metal Hip Resurfacing

Although the posterior approach is the most commonly used for hip resurfacing, concerns remain in terms of risk of femoral neck fracture secondary to an osteonecrotic event. The purpose of this study was to look at the short-term results of metal-on-metal hip resurfacing done by the vascular-preserving surgical approach as developed by Ganz in 116 hip resurfacing arthroplasties performed in 106 patients (86 men, 20 women; mean age, 46.5 years; range, 19-62). At a mean follow-up of 38.3 months (range, 12-84), Harris Hip Scores improved significantly from 53.1 to 90.16 (P < .001). There were 10 nonunions (8.7%) and 21 hips (18.3%) requiring screw removal for painful bursitis. Two hips underwent conversion to total hip arthroplasty: one at 18 months for femoral loosening and one at 7 years for acetabular loosening. Although the trochanteric slide approach as developed by Ganz provides excellent exposure to the hip joint and preserves femoral head vascularity, it does carry some inherent morbidity in regard to the greater trochanter.