Day-of-Surgery Mobilization Reduces the Length of Stay After Elective Hip Arthroplasty.

BACKGROUND: To determine the effect of mobilization on the day of surgery on the readiness for discharge and length of stay after elective total hip arthroplasty (THA). METHODS: We devised a randomized control trial with concealed allocation and intention-to-treat analysis. Overall, 126 patients who underwent THA and met the criteria for mobilization on the day of surgery were randomly allocated into 2 groups; the intervention group was mobilized on the day of surgery, n = 58 and the control group was mobilized on the day after surgery, n = 68. Apart from timing of mobilization, both groups received the same postoperative management. The primary outcome measures were length of hospital stay and time to readiness for discharge. RESULTS: The early mobilization group was ready for discharge 63 hours (standard deviation [SD] = 15 hours) after surgery, compared to 70 hours (SD = 18 hours) for the control group (P = .03, 95% CI, 0.7-12.8). There was no significant difference in hospital stay in the early mobilization group (77 hours [SD = 30 hours]), compared to the control group (87 hours [SD = 35 hours]; P = .11, 95% CI, -2.1 to 21.6). Despite this at any point in time after the surgery, the intervention group was 1.8 times (P = .003, 95% CI, = 1.2-2.7) more likely to have been discharged. CONCLUSION: Mobilization on the day of THA surgery significantly increases the probability of discharge at any singular point in time compared with mobilization on the day after surgery and decreases the time to readiness for discharge.

Does a bipolar hemiprosthesis offer advantages for elderly patients with neck of femur fracture? A clinical trial with 261 patients.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies comparing unipolar and bipolar hemiarthroplasty for treatment of displaced intracapsular femoral neck fractures in elderly patients have often lacked methodological power and yielded conflicting clinical results. The objective of this study was to compare the clinical outcomes from each implant in a randomized cohort of elderly patients with intracapsular fracture of the femoral neck treated with a cemented hemiprosthesis. METHODS: This study is a clinical trial of 261 patients (82.0 ± 7.9 years) who were randomly assigned to one of the two treatment groups: group 1 (n = 133) received a cemented bipolar implant and group 2 (n = 128) received a unipolar head with the same stem. At 12 months post-surgery, pain and functional abilities were quantified by blinded assessors using the Oxford and Harris Hip Scores, Verbal Numerical Rating Score and Six-Minute Walk. The Mann-Whitney U-test and t-test for independent samples were used to compare results between the groups (P < 0.05). RESULTS: There were no significant differences in any clinical scores between the groups. Results from the Six-Minute Walk indicated no difference in functional walking ability or endurance (P = 0.446) between the groups. Self-selected pain ratings also did not differ between groups (P = 0.236). Patients receiving the unipolar prosthesis had significantly reduced abduction (P = 0.0001) and internal rotation (P = 0.047) in the operated hip compared to the non-operated hip. CONCLUSION: These short-term results suggest that unipolar implants share many of the advantages of the bipolar prosthesis but can be manufactured at substantially lower cost. These implants may be appropriate for the less-active elderly patient, particularly when used with bone cement.