Comparison of case and control groups in terms of postoperative complications, outcomes, and survival in total hip arthroplasty patients with and without COVID-19.

Introduction: Total hip aarthroplasty (THA) is not performed worldwide as an emergency surgical procedure and has often been postponed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The hypothesis of this study was that COVID-19 caused the extra burden and mortality of THA patients. This study aimed to investigate the problems caused by comorbid COVID-19 in addition to the current clinical status in patients who had undergone THA.

Materials And Methods: A case-control group study was conducted with the participation of patients with COVID-19 and without COVID-19 who had undergone THA and were hospitalized in an orthopedic clinic and intensive care unit at a research and training hospital. IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences 25.0 was used for data analysis.

Results: A total of 291 patients who had undergone THA were included in the study: 161 patients with COVID-19 constituted the control group and 130 patients without COVID-19 constituted the case group. In this study, the authors found that THA patients with COVID-19 had higher rates of nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, musculo-articular pain, and headache compared to those without COVID-19, and the difference was statistically significant ( < 0.01); 17.7% of the patients with COVID-19 died, and delirium developed in 35.4%. The difference between the case and the control groups was statistically significant in terms of delirium and death ( < 0.01).

Discussion: COVID-19 increases the risk of delirium and death in THA patients, as well as extending the hospital stay. The fact that the pandemic is not over yet and that despite vaccination, COVID-19 continues to have its devastating effects experienced, especially by individuals in their advanced age.