Congenital dislocation of the hip: a prospective study comparing ultrasound and clinical examination

Screening for congenital dislocation of the hip by standard clinical methods and ultrasound was compared prospectively in 1503 newborns (1291 girls and 212 boys). A total of 82.8% of the hips (78.8% of the infants) had well developed acetabulae, 14.5% (17.2% of the infants) were shallow (immature) and 2.7% (4.1% of the infants) were dysplastic. Within 1-3 months 96.7% of the infants with clinically stable, but immature hips normalized, while 3.3% did not improve or worsened, and therapy was therefore initiated. Indications for treatment included dysplastic and/or clinically unstable hips, and a higher number of newborns were treated during the study period than in 1982-85 (31.2 vs 19.7 per 1000, p = 0.0002). Thirty-seven percent of the patients had both clinical and ultrasound findings compatible with congenital dislocation of the hip, while the decision to treat was based on clinical findings alone in 25.0% and on ultrasound findings in 38.0%. Infants born during the study period of nine months had a low incidence of late congenital dislocation of the hip compared with our earlier reported results from 1982-85 (0.9 vs 3.5 per 1000, p = 0.012). The study demonstrated major discrepancies between clinical and ultrasound evaluation of hips in the newborn, and the role of ultrasound in the screening for congenital dislocation of the hip requires further evaluation.