Ten-year comparison of two different techniques for femoral bone cavity preparation—broaching versus compaction in patients with cementless total hip arthroplasty: a randomized radiostereometric study of 30 total hip arthroplasties in 15 patients operated bilaterally

AIMS: Femoral bone preparation using compaction technique has been shown to preserve bone and improve implant fixation in animal models. No long-term clinical outcomes are available. There are no significant long-term differences between compaction and broaching techniques for primary total hip arthroplasty (THA) in terms of migration, clinical, and radiological outcomes. METHODS: A total of 28 patients received one-stage bilateral primary THA with cementless femoral stems (56 hips). They were randomized to compaction on one femur and broaching on the contralateral femur. Overall, 13 patients were lost to the ten-year follow-up leaving 30 hips to be evaluated in terms of stem migration (using radiostereometry), radiological changes, Harris Hip Score, Oxford Hip Score, and complications. RESULTS: Over a mean follow-up period of 10.6 years, the mean stem subsidence was similar between groups, with a mean of -1.20 mm (95% confidence interval (CI) -2.28 to -0.12) in the broaching group and a mean of -0.73 mm (95% CI -1.65 to 0.20) in the compaction group (p = 0.07). The long-term migration patterns of all stems were similar. The clinical and radiological outcomes were similar between groups. There were two intraoperative fractures in the compaction group that were fixed with cable wire and healed without complications. No stems were revised. CONCLUSION: Similar stem subsidence and radiological and clinical outcomes were identified after the use of compaction and broaching techniques of the femur at long-term follow-up. Only the compaction group had intraoperative periprosthetic femur fractures, but there were no long-term consequences of these. Cite this article: Bone Jt Open 2021;2(12):1035–1042.