Major Femoral Bone Loss in Revision Total Hip Arthroplasty: Treated with Tapered, Porous-Coated Stems

Clinical results of revision total hip arthroplasty using fully porous-coated tapered titanium stems to treat severe proximal femoral bone loss were evaluated in a retrospective review of 39 patients (45 hips). The bone was reinforced with cables in 39 hips, and in 14 hips strut allografts were added. Fixation was successful in 44 hips, and one hip required revision to treat undetected fracture and migration of the stem. All the others had radiographic evidence of bone attachment. Neither bone atrophy nor reconstitution was noted. Three patients (3 hips) had mild thigh pain, but the others had no pain related to the femoral component. Eight hips dislocated; one resolved and seven had recurrent dislocation that was treated with a constrained acetabular component, capsulorrhaphy, or liner reorientation. Ten patients (12 hips) used a walker and 10 patients (12 hips) used a cane at the last postoperative visit. Whereas fixation was successful with this surgical technique, complications related to deficiency of the soft tissue structures were common.