A waterproof, low-cost dressing system reduces postoperative wound dressing changes in primary total hip arthroplasty: An efficacy study.

Backgrounds: Postoperative wound complication is a major risk factor for the development of Periprosthetic joint infection. We innovatively invented a new dressing system to reduce the occurrence of postoperative wound complications and improve the quality of life of patients after total hip arthroplasty. Methods: A total of 120 patients who underwent primary unilateral total hip arthroplasty were enrolled in this study. The data collected included the number of dressing changes, costs of the dressings, postoperative hospital stay, The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) score, The Harris Hip Score (HHS), ASEPSIS score, The Stony Brook Scar Evaluation Scale (SBSES), wound complications, the frequency of showers and satisfaction. Data were statistically analyzed. Results: The average number of dressing changes was 0.74 ± 0.46, while the average postoperative hospital stay was 3.67 ± 0.97 days. The average cost of the new dressings throughout a treatment cycle was 57.42 ± 15.18 dollars. The VAS score decreased from 5.63 ± 1.09 before the operation to 0.88 ± 0.54 one month after the operation. The HHS score increased from 70.18 ± 7.84 before the operation to 80.36 ± 4.08 one month after the operation. The results of the four indexes of the ASEPSIS score were all 0. The SBSES score was 3.55 ± 0.61 at two weeks after the operation, and 4.38 ± 0.71 at one month after the operation. No wound complications were recorded until one month after the operation when the satisfaction rate was 92.53 ± 3.62%. Conclusion: In this study, we have invented a new dressing system for surgical wounds after total hip arthroplasty and confirmed its efficacy. Chinese Clinical Trial Registry: ChiCTR2000033822, Registered 13/ June/2020.

Assessment of the Learning Curve of Supercapsular Percutaneously Assisted Total Hip Arthroplasty in an Asian Population.

The supercapsular percutaneously assisted total hip (SuperPATH) approach is a microinvasive approach that was developed to minimize surgical disruption of soft tissue during routine total hip arthroplasty (THA). This study was aimed at assessing early outcomes and learning curves of the SuperPATH approach in one Chinese hospital's experience. Early outcomes of the first consecutive 78 SuperPATH cases (80 hips) performed by the same surgeon were evaluated. The patients were divided into 4 groups according to the surgical order. The incision, intraoperative blood loss, hospital stay, Harris hip score, and complication occurrence in each group were evaluated. Learning curves were assessed using operative time and intraoperative blood loss as surrogates. The operation time and intraoperative blood loss of groups A and B were more than those of groups C and D, and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05); however, there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups (group A vs. group B, P = 0.426; group A vs. group B, P = 0.426). There was no statistically significant difference in terms of incision length and hospital stay, and Harris hip score at the last follow-up was increased with statistically significant difference when compared with that preoperatively among the 4 groups. One case of periprosthetic fracture occurred in group A. No other complication, such as joint dislocation, sciatic nerve injury, prosthesis loosening, periprosthetic infection, and deep vein thromboembolism, occurred in the 4 groups. In summary, for surgeons who are familiar with the standard posterolateral approach, they could achieve more familiarity with SuperPATH after 40 cases of surgery.