Staged bilateral total hip arthroplasty using rough and smooth surface femoral stems with similar design: 10-year survivorship of 48 cases

Background?Various studies have reported good long-term results using femoral stems with either smooth or rough surfaces. In this retrospective cross-sectional survivorship study, we reviewed the 10-year results of 51 bilateral staged cemented total hip arthroplasties using the Harvard or the Charnley femoral stems—which have almost similar geometry but a different surface finish.

Methods?51 patients were reviewed at median interval of 10 (Harvard group) and 11 years (Charnley group) after the primary operation. We evaluated cement mantle thickness, alignment of the components, presence of radiolucent lines, and aseptic loosening. Kaplan-Meier analysis was performed to calculate the survival rate using various endpoints.

Results?8 hips in the Harvard group were revised for aseptic loosening of thefemoral component at a median interval of 6.3 years after the primary procedure. 3 hips in the Charnley group were revised for aseptic loosening of the femoral and acetabular components between 10 and 11 years after the primary procedure. The 10-year survival rate for the femoral component using revision surgery for aseptic loosening as an endpoint was 80% (95% CI: 31–42) and 95% (95% CI: 44–47) in the Harvard and the Charnley group, respectively. Cox regression analysis did not reveal any statistically significant effect of various radiographical parameters on the survival rate (p < 0.05).

Interpretation?Our results demonstrate that in the group of patients studied, the femoral stem component with the matt surface finish had less satisfactory 10-year survival than the femoral stem of similar design which had a smooth surface finish.

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