The use of tapered stems for femoral revision surgery

From a biomechanical view point, cementless fixation of a tapered stem has some advantages compared with other techniques to treat severe proximal femoral bone loss in reconstructive hip surgery. We reviewed 129 consecutive revision arthroplasties of the femoral component in which the tapered Wagner self-locking revision stem was used. The mean followup of patients without rerevision of the stem was 8.1 years (range, 5.1-14.1 years). Six revision stems required rerevision (malpositioning, one stem; subsidence, one stem; periprosthetic fracture, one stem; deep infection, three stems) between 0.13 and 4.6 years postoperatively. Using removal of the stem for any cause as the end point, the cumulative survival at 14.1 years was 95.2%. The average Merle d'Aubigné score improved from 7.7 points preoperatively to 14.4 points at the latest followup. Because of new bone formation, the most recent radiographs showed clear, good, or excellent restoration of the proximal femur in 88% of patients. Considering possible late complications such as osteolysis of the femur, aseptic loosening, periprosthetic fracture, and late infection, the shortest stem that ensures sufficient mechanical stability should be used. It may be easier to achieve high primary stability in short stems with a tapered design than with other short stem designs.