Is Swanson prosthesis better than Sutter prosthesis for metacarpophalangeal joint arthroplasty? A meta-analysis

Six randomized controlled trials (143 patients) were included in this review which compared Sutter and Swanson metacarpophalangeal joint arthroplasty prostheses, with 5 of the studies also being used in the meta-analysis. Range of motion, incidence of prosthesis fracture, recurrence of ulnar drift, and grip strength were among the outcomes measured for up to 5 years. Pooled results indicated that the Sutter prosthesis may allow for significantly less risk of recurrence drift than the Swanson prosthesis, although there was no significant difference between groups in fracture risk. There was insufficient reporting of outcomes such as range of motion, pain, cosmesis, and function, and therefore meta-analysis was unable to be performed in these cases.