When the Going Gets Tough: A Review of Total Hip Arthroplasty in Patients with Ipsilateral Above- and Below-Knee Amputation.

Abstract

Life expectancy and overall function of amputated patients have improved significantly over the last few decades; for this reason, amputees are more exposed to primary or secondary degenerative disease of the hip, requiring total hip arthroplasty (THA) surgery. However, during training, not all the surgeons acquire adequate skills to manage these patients, and only a few studies and case reports describe technical pearls and outcomes of THA in patients with ipsilateral lower limb amputation, either above or below the knee. The objective of this narrative review is to present current evidence and surgical tips for performing THA in ipsilateral amputated patients, with a focus on the differences between patients with above- (AKA) and below-knee amputation (BKA). We reviewed manuscripts in major scientific databases, cross-referencing to retrieve adjunctive manuscripts, and summarized all relevant cases. We found 17 manuscripts, spanning 70 years of literature, collecting a total of 39 patients who underwent THA on an ipsilateral amputated limb: 13 AKA, 23 BKA, and 3 through-knee-amputation (TKA). The cohort primarily consists of patients with post-traumatic hip arthritis, often associated with sequelae such as fractures to other bones, soft tissue compromise and heterotopic calcifications. Managing with amputated patients requires careful planning, which includes the study of the residual bone, muscle anatomy, and the level of femoral amputation, as these factors present significant surgical challenges, especially in patients without a knee joint. In dealing with the post-traumatic and multi-comorbidity patients, rehabilitation goals should be considered prior to surgery and should drive the surgical strategy. We found that BKA patients typically have high functional demands, necessitating precise positioning of the components and an aggressive post-operative physiotherapy regimen to avoid unsatisfactory outcomes. AKA patients, on the other hand, often present with altered anatomy, and typically require more surgical instruments and expertise to achieve intraoperative dislocation of the hip joint.