Can viscosupplementation be used in the hip? An Italian perspective

Identifying the procedural gap and improved methods for maintaining accuracy during total hip arthroplasty

Osteoarthritis is a ubiquitous condition, affecting 26 million Americans each year, with up to 17% of adults over age 75 suffering from one variation of arthritis. The hip is one of the most commonly affected joints and while there are conservative options for treatment, as symptoms progress, many patients eventually turn to surgery to manage their pain and dysfunction. Early surgical options such as osteotomy or arthroscopy are reserved for younger, more active patients with less severe disease and symptoms. Total hip arthroplasty offers a viable solution for patients with severe degenerative changes; however, post-surgical discrepancies in leg length, offset and component malposition are common and cause significant complications. Such discrepancies are associated with consequences such as low back pain, neurological deficits, instability and overall patient dissatisfaction. Current methods for managing leg length and offset during hip arthroplasty are either inaccurate and susceptible to error or are cumbersome, expensive and lengthen surgical time. There is currently no viable option that provides accurate, real-time data to surgeons regarding leg length, offset and cup position in a cost-effective manner. As such, we hypothesize that a procedural gap exists in hip arthroplasty, a gap into which fall a large majority of arthroplasty patients who are at increased risk of complications following surgery. These complications and associated treatments place significant stress on the healthcare system. The costs associated with addressing leg length and offset discrepancies can be minor, requiring only heel lifts and short-term rehabilitation, but can also be substantial, with revision hip arthroplasty costs of up to $54,000 per procedure. The need for a cost-effective, simple to use and unobtrusive technology to address this procedural gap in hip arthroplasty and improve patient outcomes is of increasing importance. Given the aging of the population, the projected increases in the volume of procedures over the coming decades and the economic pressures associated with downward pricing pressure and bundled payments, the need to address this gap is underscored.

Management of Labral and Chondral Disease in Hip Preservation Surgery

The techniques utilized for the management of articular cartilage and labrum injuries during hip preservation surgery have changed dramatically recently. Conservative treatment may involve image-guided injection of cortisone or viscosupplementation in conjunction with oral NSAIDs and physical therapy. Damage to the labrum runs a broad spectrum, and the treatments are individualized, but span from debridement to repair and reconstruction. The overarching goal of labral treatment is to restore the native functions of the labrum to allow for more normal biomechanical function. Similarly, cartilage injuries can be managed a number of different ways, including with debridement, microfracture or drilling, cartilage transplants, and higher level restorative techniques. These cartilage restoration techniques have evolved rapidly as well, and may include the use of scaffolds, allograft cartilage cells, and other stem-cell-related procedures.

Single intra-articular injection of high molecular weight hyaluronic acid for hip osteoarthritis

Background

Intra-articular (IA) injection of hyaluronic acid (HA) into the hip joint appears to be safe and well tolerated but only a small number of randomized clinical trials in humans has been published. The objective of this prospective study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a single IA injection of high-molecular-weight (2800 kDa) HA (Coxarthrum) for hip osteoarthritis.

Materials and methods

All patients received a single IA administration of 2.5 % sodium hyaluronate (75 mg/3 mL) of high molecular weight. Fluoroscopy requires an iodized contrast medium (iopamidol, 1 ml) which highlights the capsule before administering HA. Patients were evaluated before IA injection (T0), after 3 months, after 6 months and after 1 year from injection. Results were evaluated by the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI II), Harris Hip Score and a visual analog scale of pain (pain VAS). All treated patients were considered for statistical analysis.

Results

Two hundred seven patients were included at T0. The mean age was 67 years (range 46–81). Regarding BPI severity score, changes in pain between T0 and the three following visits were statistically highly significant (p < 0.001). Changes in pain score compared to the previous visit were statistically significant for the worst pain in the second quarter post-intervention (p = 0.037) and for mean pain in the second semester post-intervention (p = 0.043) The evolution of the Harris Hip Score was statistically highly significant (p < 0.001) between T0 and the following visits (T0 + 3 months, T0 + 6 months and T0 + 12 months); after a significant change between T0 and T0 + 3 months, the score remained stable. The evolution of the pain VAS showed a statistically highly significant improvement (p < 0.001) between T0 and T0 + 3 months; thereafter it remained stable from the first quarter post-intervention. No serious adverse event was noted; 12 cases (0.5 %) of pain associated with transient synovitis are noteworthy.

Conclusion

This study shows that a single IA injection of Coxarthrum is effective from the third month and that the results are stable or continue to improve up to 1 year.

Level of evidence

IV.