Neurovascular Injury in Hip Arthroplasty

Neurological and vascular complications following hip arthroplasty are uncommon, and their impact ranges from transient and trivial to permanent and devastating. The proximity of neural and vascular structures makes any operation on the hip potentially hazardous. Direct or indirect injuries of these structures may occur during operative exposure and subsequent procedures. Thus, complete awareness of the anatomy of the pelvis and proximal femur is required. Peripheral nerve injuries can involve either distant sites or nerves in the immediate vicinity of the hip joint. Sciatic nerve injury is the most common nerve injury following total hip arthroplasty. Femoral nerve injury is much less common and is associated with an anterior approach. Its diagnosis is often delayed, but the prognosis is generally better than with sciatic nerve injury. The superior gluteal nerve is at risk during the direct lateral approach. Obturator nerve injury is the least common type of injury and has the least functional consequences. Vascular injuries are less common but more immediately life threatening. The mechanisms of vascular injury include occlusion associated with preexisting peripheral vascular disease and vascular injury during removal of cement during screw fixation of acetabular components, cages, or structural grafts. It is critical to avoid the anterior quadrants for acetabular screw fixation. All acetabular and femoral defects should be bone-grafted to avoid inadvertent cement migration. Following these guidelines, surgeons should be able to offer the most appropriate treatment and counseling to the patients.