Femoral stem migration after direct lateral and direct anterior total hip arthroplasty: a prospective cohort study

Background: The direct lateral (DL) approach to total hip arthroplasty is more commonly used than the newer direct anterior (DA) approach. Both approaches use collared or collarless femoral stems. We sought to assess implant stability of stem designs implanted with the DL approach and compare outcomes from this cohort with those of a previously reported cohort of patients who underwent arthroplasty with a DA approach. We also sought to determine if early recovery influences differences in migration. Methods: Patients underwent total hip arthroplasty using the DL or the DA approach and were randomized to receive either a collared or collarless, cementless femoral stem. On the day of surgery and at 6 follow-up visits through to 1 year, patients underwent supine radiostereometric imaging to track implant migration. At follow-up visits, patients performed an instrumented walking test to assess their functional ability and logged an average daily step count to assess their activity levels. We assessed whether patient function and activity were correlated with migration. Results: Stem design did not have a significant effect on migration for the DL group (p = 0.894). Compared with the DA group, the DL group migrated significandy less for both collared (p = 0.031) and collarless (p = 0.002) stems. Migration was not correlated with function or activity at any time point (p > 0.05). Conclusion: Most implant migration occurred from the day of surgery to 2 weeks after the operation and stabilized thereafter, suggesting adequate fixation and a low risk for aseptic loosening in both patient groups.

Automated summary

This study compared the stability and migration of different femoral stem designs in direct lateral and direct anterior total hip arthroplasty. The results showed that the direct lateral group had less femoral stem migration compared to the direct anterior group. Migration was not correlated with function or activity.