Relationship Between Developmental Dislocation of the Hip in Infant and Acetabular Dysplasia at Skeletal Maturity

Previous reports demonstrated 8–60% patients treated for developmental dislocation of hip (DDH) in infancy have residual acetabular dysplasia (AD) at skeletal maturity. AD patients reportedly exhibit abnormal morphology of the pelvis, high rates of comorbid spinal congenital anomalies and high bone mineral density. These physical findings suggest that AD patients have genetic background. We examined the percentage of AD patients with hip pain at skeletal maturity having a history of DDH in infancy and the correlation between the severity of AD at skeletal maturity and history of DDH treatment to investigate the relationship between AD and DDH. A total of 245 patients were radiographically examined for any history of DDH treatment in infancy. The study included 226 women and 19 men with a mean age at examination of 40.7 years (range 17–59 years). Eighty-eight patients (36%) had a history of DDH treatment (DDH group) and the remaining 157 patients (64%) had no history of DDH treatment (non-DDH group). The average age was lower and acetabular angle was larger in the DDH group. There was a significant increasing trend of the percentage of DDH patients associated with the severity of AD classified with CE, acetabular angle, and acetabular roof angle. Our data suggest that there are several AD patients without a history of DDH in Japan, and AD in patients without a history of DDH has different characteristics from AD in patients with a history of DDH.