Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33639901›Full record

ArticleBMC musculoskeletal disorders2021

Persisting inter-limb differences in patients following total hip arthroplasty four to five years after surgery? A preliminary cross-sectional study.

Stefanie John, David Weizel, Anna S Heumann, Anja Fischer, Katja Orlowski, Kai-Uwe Mrkor, Jürgen Edelmann-Nusser, Kerstin Witte

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC musculoskeletal disorders, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
1.5field-weighted citation impact, top 19% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed, 8 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Biomechanical Assessment of Functional Tasks Beyond Level Walking Following Total Hip Arthroplasty: A Scoping Review.Journal of orthopaedic research : official publication of the Orthopaedic Research Society · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. A Retrospective Single-Center Study of 23 Patients to Compare Gait Before and After Total Hip Arthroplasty Using the S-ROM Modular Hip System.Medical science monitor : international medical journal of experimental and clinical research · 2021
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Stefanie JohnSports Science, Faculty of Humanities, Otto-von-Guericke-University, Zschokkestraße 32, 39104, Magdeburg, Germany. Stefanie.John@ovgu.de.
David WeizelSports Science, Faculty of Humanities, Otto-von-Guericke-University, Zschokkestraße 32, 39104, Magdeburg, Germany.
Anna S HeumannSports Science, Faculty of Humanities, Otto-von-Guericke-University, Zschokkestraße 32, 39104, Magdeburg, Germany.
Anja FischerSports Science, Faculty of Humanities, Otto-von-Guericke-University, Zschokkestraße 32, 39104, Magdeburg, Germany.
Katja OrlowskiDepartment of Computer Science and Media, Brandenburg University of Applied Sciences, Magdeburger Straße 50, 14770, Brandenburg an der Havel, Germany.
Kai-Uwe MrkorDepartment of Computer Science and Media, Brandenburg University of Applied Sciences, Magdeburger Straße 50, 14770, Brandenburg an der Havel, Germany.
Jürgen Edelmann-NusserSports Science, Faculty of Humanities, Otto-von-Guericke-University, Zschokkestraße 32, 39104, Magdeburg, Germany.
Kerstin WitteSports Science, Faculty of Humanities, Otto-von-Guericke-University, Zschokkestraße 32, 39104, Magdeburg, Germany.
Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg · DEBrandenburg University of Applied Sciences · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundTotal hip arthroplasty (THA) is an effective procedure for patients with end-stage hip osteoarthritis. However, whether or not pre-operatively existing functional deficits are persisting several years post-surgery in the affected limb has not been thoroughly researched. Therefore, the primary aim of this preliminary study was to include patients four to five years after undergoing THA and to investigate potential differences between the operated and non-operated leg in hip strength, range of motion (ROM), balance, and gait. The secondary aim was to compare these values from the operated leg of the patients to those of the legs of healthy subjects.

methodsSixteen patients (age: 65.20 ± 5.32 years) following unilateral THA (post-operation time: 4.7 ± 0.7 years) and ten, healthy, age-matched control subjects (age: 60.85 ± 7.57 years) were examined for maximum isometric hip muscle strength, active ROM of the hip joint, balance and gait on both limbs. Paired t-tests were used to assess the inter-limb differences in the THA group. Analyses of covariance (ANCOVA) were performed to compare groups, using age as a covariate.

resultsThe analysis of inter-limb differences in patients following THA revealed significant deficits on the operated side for hip abduction strength (p = 0.02), for hip flexion ROM (p < 0.01) and for balance in terms of the length of center of pressure (COP) (p = 0.04). Compared to values of the control subjects, the patients demonstrated significantly reduced hip strength in flexion, extension and abduction (p < 0.05) on the operated leg as well as reduced ROM measures in hip flexion, extension and abduction (p < 0.05).

conclusionsThe first results of this explorative study indicated that inter-limb differences as well as reduced hip strength and hip ROM compared with control subjects were still present four to five years after THA. These persisting asymmetries and deficits in patients following THA may be one explanation for the decrease in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) seen in patients over the years after surgery. Further studies are required to replicate these findings with a larger sample size.

trial registrationDRKS, DRKS00016945. Registered 12 March 2019 - Retrospectively registered.

Indexed as

Arthroplasty, Replacement, HipOsteoarthritis, HipAgedCross-Sectional StudiesHip JointHumansMiddle AgedQuality of LifeRange of Motion, ArticularBalanceGaitInter‐limb differenceMuscle strengthRange of motionTotal hip arthroplasty

Identifiers

PMID33639901
PMCPMC7916281
OpenAlexW3133651286

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.