A New Technique for Extraction of A Fractured Femoral Stem (A Case Report)

Abstract

Femoral stem fracture of a unipolar modular hip prosthesis was diagnosed in a patient 30 months after he had been operated for a femoral neck fracture. The broken stem pieces and cement were removed with special hand tools, developed for this operation and revision total hip arthroplasty was performed. Case Report: A physically active, sixty-two year old man, weighting 98 kilogram had sustained a right femoral neck fracture operation in 1996. A modular type unipolar hip arthroplasty was performed. On December 1998 thirty months after the operation he suffered from a severe hip pain on the operated side. Physical and radiological examination revealed a femoral stem fracture. Specially designed drill, taper and threaded remover were developed for the retrieval of the distal part of the stem and the cement. With the help of these instruments distal part of the stem and the cement were removed quickly and easily. There was no need to extend the exposure or to open a window in the femur. These instruments should be born in mind for the removal of the distal part of a fractured femoral stem.