A natural course of a dislocated healed tuberculous hip in a child. A case report

Subluxation was once a common complication of the tuberculous hip, even when properly treated. A review of the English literature failed to disclose the corrective process of development of the hip joint following a debridement operation. A three-year-old boy having a proven tuberculous hip had his hip dislocated after joint debridement. In the ensuing ten years, the luxated head spontaneously reduced to nearly normal position. Transitory capsular laxity was believed to cause the dislocation in this case, while growth and development led to spontaneous reduction. A decade may elapse before relocation is complete.