Thigh pain in cementless hip replacement. Clinical and radiographic correlations.

The authors analyse a series of 35 Rippen System cementless hip joint prostheses implanted in 32 patients from May 1987 to September 1988. Certain radiographic parameters were studied in an attempt to find a correlation with the clinical results. Special attention was paid to the high incidence of thigh pain, attempting to identify the cause through radiographic study of the bone-implant interface. Even when analyzed using Kappa statistics, the correlation between the clinical and radiographic findings was purely incidental. In agreement with the literature, the authors identify some elements which should be investigated further such as primary temporary fixation of the stem, reduction of micromotion, and biocompatibility of the materials.