Telemeterized in vivo hip joint force data: a report on two patients after total hip surgery

Two telemeterized femoral components were implanted in two patients as part of normal total hip replacement procedures. The two components were instrumented to measure the three force components directed along: (a) the neck axis, (b) transverse to the neck axis and in the plane of the prosthesis, and (c) transverse to the neck axis and perpendicular to the plane of the prosthesis. Data were collected at multiple sessions during the early postoperative period for a number of standard activities, including gait, stair climbing, rising from a chair, single leg stance, double leg stance, ipsilateral and contralateral straight leg lifts while supine, ipsilateral flexion and extension while standing, and ipsilateral abduction while standing and lying on the contralateral side. These data are summarized and compared with the published results from analytic studies and with the results from previous studies using instrumented femoral components. Peak loads for gait during the period of study were roughly 2.7 body weights (BW) when the patients walked at their normal pace. Contact forces at the hip during stationary single leg stance approximated the peak loads during gait with values ranging from 2.1 to 2.8 BW. The highest forces recorded reached values approaching 5.5 BW and occurred during periods of instability while the patient engaged in stationary single leg stance. Our in vivo data indicate that forces generated during the above activities increase in magnitude quite rapidly during the early postoperative period and that during this period the patients have the ability to perform the activities of daily living without generating the high amplitude joint contact forces suggested by the results of dynamic studies. Joint contact forces during gait were found to depend on speed, but the high absolute magnitudes predicted by model studies were not supported by the in vivo data.