Minimally invasive surgery supercapsular percutaneously-assisted total hip (SuperPath) arthroplasty: Applicability to mildly dysplastic osteoarthritis and early recovery of lower limb function

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The benefits of minimally invasive surgical techniques in total hip arthroplasty (THA) are well known, but concerns about applying SuperPATH in patients with secondary OA of acetabular dysplasia do not have been reported. We aim to evaluate whether SuperPATH is applicable to secondary OA, furthermore, to quantify the recovery of lower extremity function. METHODS: 30 patients with secondary OA admitted for THA applying SuperPATH were investigated. Clinical Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) Score and radiographical evaluation were performed. Following was examined pre- and early post-operatively; pain level, blood tests, TUG and 10-M walking time for lower limb recovery. RESULTS: Preoperative radiographic measurements revealed an average Sharp angle of 46.2 ± 2.8 degrees and CE angle of 19.4 ± 7.3 degrees. 29 THAs had Crowe Type I and 1 THA had Crowe Type II. JOA score improved from 48.8 preoperatively to 91.5 at 2 months postoperatively. The perioperative pain assessment (VAS) averaged 7.0±1.5 preoperatively, 4.6±2.6 on the first postoperative day, then decreased gradually to 1.2±1.4 at 2 weeks. Blood data showed that creatine kinase, myoglobin, and CRP were significantly elevated on the day after surgery, but they normalized at 2 weeks postoperatively. Both TUG and 10M walking time showed slightly higher values at 1 week postoperatively compared to preoperatively but recovered to the same level as preoperatively at 2 weeks after surgery. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggests that SuperPATH approach to THA for secondary OA of dysplasia was applicable to mildly dysplastic OA and achieved an early recovery of lower limb function. (www.actabiomedica.it)