Risk Factors for Amputation in the Surgical Treatment of Hemophilic Osteoarthropathy: A 20-Year Single-Center Report

PURPOSE: Hemophilic osteoarthropathy (HO) is a common cause of spontaneous bleeding in hemophiliacs. Surgical procedures are necessary for patients with severe HO. As a last resort, amputation is sometimes needed to treat complex HO cases. This study aimed to review the existing records of patients who underwent amputations in HO surgical treatment, summarize the risk factors, and provide relevant references for surgeons. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the records of hemophilic patients received surgeries at Peking Union Medical College Hospital between 2000 and 2020. The amputation patients without neoplasm or acute trauma were screened out. Patient information was extracted from medical records. A literature retrieval of hemophilic amputation cases was conducted via PubMed. The risk factors of amputation were summarized and analyzed via descriptive statistics and Fisher's precision probability test. RESULTS: Four male hemophilia A patients out of 201 patients underwent lower limb amputation. The reasons of amputation contained severe pseudotumor with factor inhibitor and large bone defects, recurrent pathological fracture with pseudotumor, skin ulcer with chronic osteomyelitis, and pseudotumor with systematic infection. In cases reported in retrieved literature, severe pseudotumor with complications, bacterial infection and factor inhibitor were common factors. Discussion. As the first study on amputations in HO patients, we found that severe hemophilic pseudotumor, chronic bacterial infection, and coagulation factor inhibitor was potential risk factors for amputation. Sufficient factor replacement therapy is fundamental in the prevention of amputation. The early diagnosis and specially designed surgical techniques could improve the rate of limb salvage.