Survivorship and Patient Satisfaction With Stablyx Implant for Thumb Carpometacarpal Arthroplasty

Many surgical techniques and devices are available to address thumb carpometacarpal (CMC) joint arthritis. To date, limited evidence exists regarding patient satisfaction, patient-reported outcomes, and revision-free survivorship of the Stablyx implant. We sought to examine these metrics for these implants against conventional CMC arthroplasty techniques.

Six hundred and thirty-one patients who underwent CMC arthroplasty were identified at our institution. Patients were contacted to obtain patient satisfaction scores, Quick Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (QuickDASH) scores, and potential revision dates. Retrospective chart review was then performed on all 287 respondents. Respondents were placed into cohorts based on the arthroplasty surgical technique: (1) Stablyx (n = 53); (2) ligament reconstruction and tendon interposition (LRTI) with the flexor carpi radialis (n = 90); (3) abductor pollicis longus (APL) suspensionplasty (n = 71); and (4) TightRope suspensionplasty (n = 73). Minimum follow-up was 6 months with an average follow-up of 3.6 ± 2.2 years for the Stablyx cohort and 5.3 ± 2.8 years for all other CMC arthroplasty techniques (AOCAT). Patient demographics, including age, sex, smoking status, Eaton score, and operating surgeon, were also examined.

Through multivariable modeling, higher revision rates were observed in patients who received Stablyx than those who underwent LRTI (control), APL suspensionplasty, or TightRope suspensionplasty. Dissatisfaction was greater in the Stablyx cohort (35%) than the AOCAT cohort (6.8%). No difference in QuickDASH scores were observed between groups.

Higher revision rates and lower patient satisfaction scores were seen in patients who underwent Stablyx CMC hemiarthroplasty compared with other arthroplasty techniques.