title: Perforation of the femoral shaft during total hip replacement.
abstract: Perforation of the femoral shaft by the prosthetic stem as a complication of total hip replacement is not well described in the literature. We studied twelve patients with this complication in order to define the predisposing factors, optimum management, and long-term outcome. Each patient was found to have one or more of the following factors: female sex, osteoporosis, previous fracture, or previous surgery. Once the complication was recognized, management consisted of protected weight-bearing for six weeks. All but two of the patients were asymptomatic after an average follow-up of five years. Judging from the long-term roetgenographic follow-up, penetration of the femoral shaft does not appear to seriously compromise the fixation of the femoral component.
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D005264:Femoral Fractures / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery; D005271:Femur Head Necrosis / Q000150:complications; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006621:Hip Joint / Q000601:surgery*; D006622:Hip Prosthesis / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010003:Osteoarthritis / Q000601:surgery; D010024:Osteoporosis / Q000150:complications; D012737:Sex Factors