Patient-adapted treatment for prosthetic hip joint infection

Hip joint replacement is 1 of the most successful surgical procedures of the last century and the number of replacements implanted is steadily growing. An infected hip arthroplasty is a disaster, it leads to patient suffering, surgeon's frustration and significant costs to the health system. The treatment of an infected hip replacement is challenging, healing rates can be low, functional results poor with decreased patient satisfaction. However, if a patient-adapted treatment of infected hip joints is used a success rate of above 90% can be obtained. Patient-adapted treatment is based on 5 important concepts: teamwork; understanding the biofilm; diagnostic accuracy; correct definition and classification of PJI; and patient-tailored treatment. This review presents a patient-adapted treatment strategy to prosthetic hip infection. It incorporates the best aspects of the single and staged surgical strategies and promotes the short interval philosophy for the 2-stage approach.