3D-printed antibiotic-loaded bone cement spacers as adjunctive therapy for hip periprosthetic infection after arthroplasty: A clinical assessment

To explore the effect of 3D-printing technology in assisting the treatment of periprosthetic infection after total hip arthroplasty (THA) by using personalized antibiotic-loaded bone cement (ALBC) spacers. The data of 40 patients with postoperative infection after THA were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into 3D printing group (age 47-78 years) and conventional group (age 57-78 years), with 20 cases in each group. In the stage I surgery, the 3D printing group used 3D printed silicone molds to create ALBC spacers, while the conventional group used traditional manual methods. After the infection was controlled, both groups underwent conventional hip revision surgery in the stage II surgery. All patients were evaluated by Harris hip score (HHS) (primary outcome) for hip function. All 40 patients had follow-up data, with 3 months after the first stage and 12 months after the second stage. HHS: The intergroup difference was 11.25 points (97.5% confidence interval (CI), 7.92 to 14.58; P <0.01) at 3 months after the first stage, and 9.15 points (97.5% CI, 4.82 to 13.48; P <0.01) at 12 months after the second stage, and the overall difference between the two groups was 9.55 points (97.5% CI, 5.83 to 13.27; P <0.01), which was statistically significant (P<0.05). During the follow-up period, the hip functional of the 3D printing group were superior to those of the conventional group in the treatment of infections after THA.