Risk Factors for Wound Complication Following Primary Total Hip Arthroplasty

This study assessed the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP), which provides data on 30-day post-operative complications from 500+ institutions, to identify risk factors for wound complications in patients undergoing primary total hip arthroplasty (THA). Patients undergoing primary THA between 2010–2017 were retrospectively reviewed. Patients experiencing post-operative wound complications were stratified based on pre-operative characteristics. Multivariate regression model was used to assess these characteristics as independent risk factors for post-operative complications. Of 119,096 patients undergoing primary THA, 1,264 (1.06%), 280 (0.2%), 622 (0.52%) and 139 (0.12%) experienced wound complications, deep surgical site infection, superficial surgical site infection, and wound dehiscence, respectively. Pre-operative transfusion (p < 0.0001), steroid use (p = 0.01), and obesity (p < 0.0001) were risk factors for wound dehiscence. Pre-operative transfusion (p < 0.0001), cardiac comorbidities (p = 0.02), and steroid use (p = 0.01) were risk factors for superficial surgical site infection. Assessment of the NSQIP identified modifiable risk factors for wound complications following primary THA, including pre-operative transfusion, steroid use, and obesity. (Journal of Surgical Orthopaedic Advances 31(4):242–247, 2022) Key words: NSQIP, wound, dehiscence, infection, THA, post-operative complication