2020 COA Annual Meeting: Supercapsular Percutaneously-Assisted Total Hip (SuperPATH) versus Conventional Posterior Approaches for Total Hip Arthroplasty: Prospective Randomized Controlled Study (COA P17)

A total of forty-five patients were randomized to either receive the traditional posterior approach for patients undergoing Total Hip Arthroplasty (THA) or the Supercapsular Percutaneously-Assisted Total Hip (SuperPATH) approach which is a new and less invasive procedure causing less blood loss and scarring. This was a prospective randomized controlled trial conducted between April 2017 to March 2019 and patients were followed-up 12 months after surgery. The primary outcome consisted of patients ability to return to function, measured with the Timed Up and Go test, Timed Stair Climb test and Oxford Hip Scores. Secondary outcomes of interest consisted of pain measures (e.g., narcotic consumption, Visual Analogue Scale (VAS)). Peri-operative measures were also included (e.g., length of stay, blood loss, components position, operative time, time before discontinuation of mobility aids, return to work, and complications). Results demonstrated that return to work was earlier by 2 weeks in the SuperPATH approach, as well as the time to discontinuation of mobility aids. In addition, despite relatively similar pain scores in the 2 approaches, the patients who had undergone the SuperPATH approach consumed less opioids. Operative time was shorter in the traditional posterior approach.