Treatment of infection at the site of total hip replacement

The modern era of total hip arthroplasty is little more than thirty years old, and during that time the procedure has proved to be highly effective in improving the physical function, social interaction, and over-all health of millions of patients. Initially, the procedure was associated with notabl...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of bone and joint surgery. American volume 1997-11, Vol.79 (11), p.1740-1749
Main Authors: MASTERSON, E. L, MASRI, B. A, DUNCAN, C. P
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bacterial arthritis and osteitis
Bacterial diseases
Biological and medical sciences
Human bacterial diseases
Infectious diseases
Medical sciences
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Summary:The modern era of total hip arthroplasty is little more than thirty years old, and during that time the procedure has proved to be highly effective in improving the physical function, social interaction, and over-all health of millions of patients. Initially, the procedure was associated with notable rates of infection but these have since been reduced considerably with measures such as prophylactic antibiotics, ultraclean-air operating rooms, and careful selection of patients. However, this reduction in the prevalence of postoperative deep infection has been accompanied by a steady increase in the frequency with which the operation is performed. Progress in the development of the optimum treatment of infection at the site of a total hip replacement has been slow. Such infections are sufficiently uncommon that only large tertiary referral centers can accumulate sufficient numbers of patients for study. In addition, the large number of variables in these complex cases makes it difficult to plan well controlled prospective trials of different treatment modalities.
ISSN:0021-9355
1535-1386
DOI:10.2106/00004623-199711000-00017