Erythrocyte sedimentation rate in infection of total hip replacements

Erythrocyte sedimentation rate was studied in 79 patients who underwent reoperations for prosthetic hip failures. Fifty-one patients had infected prostheses, confirmed on the basis of sinus formation and cultures taken at the revision operation. Twenty-eight had proven mechanical loosening of their hip prostheses, as five out of five intraoperative cultures were negative. An ESR level of 35 mm was found to represent an acceptable borderline between infected and non-infected prostheses.