Fracture of the Femoral Stem as a Rare Complication of Total Hip Arthroplasty. Cases Report.

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to present the femoral stem fracture as a rare complication of total hip arthroplasty and describe further management in such cases. We present 5 cases of stem fracture in the Mittelmeier prosthe-sis which occurred from 8 to 29 years after the primary procedure. In three cases, the primary hip arthroplasty was performed due to dysplastic coxarthrosis. The remaining two patients had idiopathic and post-traumatic coxarthrosis. The four female patients underwent revision hip arthroplasty with stem replacement. One patient refused surgical treatment and has been followed up at the outpatient clinic. Annual clinical and radiological examination is an approved method for detecting late complications Hip arthroplasty should be performed at specialised centres where relevant prostheses and instruments are used. A transfemoral approach and the use of revision stems anchored in the femoral shaft is a method of choice for revision procedures performed due to stem fractures.