The research, presented at the 12th EFORT Congress 2011, examined 170 patients who underwent primary total hip replacement. The investigators excluded patients from the study who displayed abnormal anatomy or had a BMI of more than 46.
The researchers assessed patient leg length by examining the inter teardrop line and lesser trochanter on radiographs. Spinal anesthesia was used on 99 patients and total intravenous anesthesia was used on 71 patients. The researchers noticed no difference in average operating time, drop in hemoglobin to the first postoperative day, postoperative hospital stay or transfusion rate.
However, the researchers noticed a significant difference in the proportion of patients who displayed a leg length difference of more than 7 mm — 22 percent in the spinal anesthesia group and 6 percent in the TIVA group. The study confirmed earlier findings that anesthesia type can affect leg length in primary total hip replacement.
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