Imaging of total hip arthroplasty: part II – imaging of component dislocation, loosening, infection, and soft tissue injury

Despite the remarkable success of total hip arthroplasty as treatment of arthritis of the hip, complications can still occur, and imaging plays a crucial role for both diagnosis and guiding management. Component dislocation in total hip arthroplasty is usually diagnosed on radiographs, but cross-sectional imaging is necessary to quantitatively assess component orientation which may have predisposed to the dislocation. The definitive sign of component loosening on radiography is progressive motion of the component, but CT will provide more osseous detail and recent studies have shown the role of MRI in assessing component loosening as well.
Source: Clinical Imaging - Category: Radiology Authors: Tags: Musculoskeletal and Emergency Imaging Source Type: research