Abstract
Background: A prosthetic joint infection (PJI) is a serious complication and specifically a burden for patients after hip fracture surgery, as they are mostly frail elderly patients with multiple comorbidities. Since treatment protocols are lacking there is a need to evaluate current practice.Aim: To evaluate the difference in prosthesis retention after an infected primary total hip replacement (THR) compared to PJI after hip prosthesis surgery performed for a hip fracture.Methods: We retrospectively collected data of patients who developed PJI after primary THR or after hip fracture surgery (THR or hemiarthroplasty) in the Westfriesgasthuis Hospital between 1998 and 2015. Main outcome variables were DAIR treatment and prosthesis retention.Findings: A PJI developed in 48 patients after primary THR and in 23 patients after hip fracture surgery. DAIR was performed in all patients after primary THR and in 87.0% of patients after hip fracture surgery (p<0.05). In 11.4% of patients after primary THR, revision surgery was performed within 1 year after PJI compared to 34.8% after hip fracture surgery (p<0.05). Only 2.1% of patients deceased within 1 year after infection of primary THR compared to 34.8% after hip fracture surgery (p<0.05).Conclusion: Our results showed that prosthesis retention in patients with a PJI after hip fracture surgery is 23% lower than in patients with a PJI after primary THR. This is probably due to the fact that patients who experience a hip fracture are mostly frail elderly with multiple comorbidities and therefore less able to conquer a PJI.
Highlights
A prosthetic joint infection (PJI) is a serious complication which requires extensive treatment, consisting of long term antibiotics, debridement surgery and in some cases revision surgery [16]
Treatment protocols regarding PJI after hip fracture surgery are lacking, though there is a clear difference with patients after primary total hip http://www.jbji.net replacement (THR): they have different baseline features due to the acute character of a hip fracture compared to the elective procedure for THR, like advanced age and comorbidities and the acute stress and inflammatory states resulting from the fracture [5, 10]
The aim of this study was to evaluate the difference in prosthesis retention after PJI in primary THR compared to PJI after hip prosthesis surgery performed for a hip fracture
Summary
A prosthetic joint infection (PJI) is a serious complication which requires extensive treatment, consisting of long term antibiotics, debridement surgery and in some cases revision surgery [16] This is a burden for patients after hip fracture surgery, since they are mostly frail elderly patients with multiple comorbidities. In 2013, delegates from 52 countries participated in an international consensus meeting regarding current practice for PJI management [16] This management consists of debridement, antibiotics, irrigation and retention of the prosthesis (DAIR) and/or eventually revision surgery. Treatment of a PJI in this acute patient group requires a different approach since these frail elderly patients have a higher risk of complications [15] To finalize these guidelines, evaluation of the current treatment practice is needed. Since treatment protocols are lacking there is a need to evaluate current practice
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
