Influence of surgical experience on accuracy of acetabular cup positioning in total hip arthroplasty.

Abstract

Acetabular cup positioning with respect to inclination and anteversion is important in total hip arthroplasty. Positioning affects wear, range of motion, dislocation, and aseptic loosening and is essential for the prognosis after surgery. In this study, we sought to determine the accuracy of surgeons' cup positioning and to test for any differences in accuracy among surgeons with different levels of surgical experience. Using a lateral transgluteal approach, 2 groups of surgeons with different levels of surgical experience positioned 85 cups. Fifty-nine percent of the cups were outside the safe zone of Lewinnek. There was no significant difference between the 2 groups.