Does prior core decompression have detrimental effect on subsequent total hip arthroplasty for osteonecrosis of the femoral head: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Core decompression (CD) is effective in relieving pain and delaying the progression to total hip arthroplasty (THA) for osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH). However, the influence of CD on subsequent THA has not yet been established. Therefore, we performed this systematic review to answer: does prior CD have detrimental effect on subsequent THA for ONFH, especially with regards to survivorship and functional results, as well as perioperative and postoperative complications.

Patients And Methods: After registration on PROSPERO (CRD42019118861), literature published up to and including November 2018 was searched in the PubMed, Embase and Cochrane library databases with predetermined terms. Comparative studies on the clinical outcomes between conversion to THA with prior CD (the Prior CD group) and primary THA (the Control group) for ONFH were included. The outcomes of interest included survivorship free from revision, the postoperative functional performance, perioperative and postoperative complications. Data was extracted systematically and a meta-analysis was performed.

Results: Overall, 5 retrospective cohort studies with 110 hips were identified for the Prior CD group and 237 hips were identified for inclusion in the Control group. All of the studies were of high quality in terms of the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. No difference in the rate of revision between the two groups (2/42 (4.8%) vs. 4/160 (2.5%); RR=1.92; 95% CI=0.34 to 10.75; p=0.46) was detected after a minimum two-year follow-up. The mean postoperative Harris Hip Score was similar between the two groups in all 5 studies. The two groups experienced similar blood loss (Mean difference=12.17ml; 95% CI= -15.28 to 39.61ml; p=0.38). Moreover, intraoperative fracture was increased in the Prior CD group, though this did not reach statistical significance (3/31 (9.7%) vs. 0/55 (0.0%); RR=7.05; 95% CI=0.82 to 60.78; p=0.08). Similarly, osteolysis or radiolucent lines were more likely to occur in the Prior CD group without statistical significance (9/81 (11.1%) vs. 6/200 (3.0%); RR=3.14, 95% CI=0.98 to 10.06; p=0.05).

Discussion: The present evidence indicated that prior CD does not detrimentally affect the survivorship nor hip scores of subsequent THA. Attention should be paid, however, to the potential for intraoperative fracture, postoperative osteolysis or radiolucent lines.

Level Of Evidence: III; systematic review and meta-analysis of level III retrospective comparative studies.