Incision length correlates with patient weight, height, and gender when using a minimal-incision technique in total hip arthroplasty.
Minimal-incision technique in total hip arthroplasty (THA) has been previously defined as requiring an incision of 10 cm or less. A higher complication rate for overweight or muscular patients has been demonstrated when this arbitrary cutoff is used. The purpose of this study was to perform minimal-incision technique surgery without a specific incision length cutoff on a cohort of nonselected, consecutive THA patients to determine if patient height, weight, body mass index, gender, type of femoral fixation, and/or age correlated with incision length. A total of 115 patients underwent THA (posterior approach) using minimal-incision technique by a single, experienced surgeon who performed the smallest incision that was feasible. There was a significant correlation between incision size and patient weight (p < .0001)), height (p = .007), and gender (p = .04). Complications included one patient each with postoperative instability, an intraoperative calcar fracture, and an intraoperative distal incision skin tear. These findings demonstrate that larger patients can expect a longer incision with this technique, and that for a given weight, women will have longer incisions than men. Selecting appropriate incision length for minimally invasive THA reduces potential associated complications.
McGrory
Brian J
BJ
Orthopaedic Associates of Portland, 33 Sewall Street, Portland, ME 04104, USA. mjri@yahoo.com
Finch
Morgan E
ME
Furlong
Patrick J
PJ
Ruterbories
James
J
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D019644:Arthroplasty, Replacement, Hip / Q000379:methods*; D001827:Body Height; D001835:Body Weight; D004867:Equipment Design; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019060:Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures / Q000295:instrumentation*; D015207:Osteoarthritis, Hip / Q000601:surgery*; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome