[Complications after hip operations]

From 1999 to 2008, according to a prospective and sequential compilation of data, the 12,590 hip operations (11,059 in adults and 1,531 in children) performed in our hospital showed a postoperative complication rate of 4.96% (5.2% in adults and 1.96% in children). The most frequent complications were 110 thromboses (0.87%), which were clinically apparent and proven by Doppler ultrasonography or phlebography; 191 superficial and deep disorders of wound healing (1.5%), including 57 (0.45%) infections; 88 peripheral nerve lesions (0.7%); and 53 hematoma revisions (0.42%). Operation-specific statistics for complications (total hip replacements, revisions, femoral and pelvic osteotomies, hardware removals, and operations in children, including acetabuloplasty, femoral osteotomies, and open reductions) are presented here. Those statistics make it possible to judge and compare method-specific and department-specific risks and their development over time. An open and active attitude when dealing with postoperative complications can cost effectively and efficiently improve treatment results.