Reorientational Proximal Femoral Osteotomies for Arthrogrypotic Hip Contractures

Background: Severe hip contractures in arthrogrypsosis are multiplanar, which can preclude or can greatly complicate sitting and ambulation. The reorientational osteotomy at the intertrochanteric level preserves preoperative hip motion but moves it to a more functional domain. We retrospectively compared preoperative and postoperative hip motion and evaluated the ambulatory abilities of patients who underwent the procedure. Methods: Since 2008, 65 patients with arthrogryposis had 119 reorientational proximal femoral osteotomies with a minimum follow-up of 2 years. The mean patient age at the time of the surgical procedure was 48 months. An intertrochanteric wedge osteotomy aligned the femoral shaft with the body axis, leaving the hip joint in its preexisting position. A cannulated hip blade plate was used for fixation. Hip motions were recorded preoperatively, at implant removal, and at the time of the latest follow-up, as was ambulatory ability. Results: Eighty-one hips had a mean flexion contracture of 52° preoperatively, which improved by 35°; 84 hips with a mean preoperative adduction of −20° improved by 42°; 101 hips with a mean preoperative internal rotation of −16° improved by 35° (p < 0.0001 for all). The flexion-extension total arc of motion for the 119 hips improved by 13° (p < 0.0001). Only 11 of 94 hips that preoperatively flexed ≥90° did not do so postoperatively, but none of the patients reported seating difficulties and one of the patients had already regained hip flexion of >90° by a soft-tissue release. At a mean follow-up of 40 months, 36 patients were independently ambulatory and 20 patients were walker-dependent. Conclusions: Children with arthrogryposis often have the potential for ambulation if the limb positioning can be optimized. The reorientational hip osteotomy corrects the hip contractures by altering the range of motion but not the total arc of motion. Level of Evidence: Therapeutic Level IV. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.