Comparison of Hemiarthroplasty and Anatomic Total Shoulder Arthroplasty for Shoulder Avascular Necrosis: A Meta-Analysis of Clinical Outcomes.

BACKGROUND

Hemiarthroplasty (HA) and anatomic total shoulder arthroplasty (aTSA) have been used to manage advanced stages of osteonecrosis of the shoulder. However, varied results have been reported in the literature with no consensus on which surgery yields better results.

METHODS

PubMed, Cochrane, and Google Scholar (pages 1 to 20) were queried through August 2024. Inclusion criteria consisted of studies that compared the utility of HA with that of aTSA for the treatment of shoulder osteonecrosis. The compared outcomes consisted of adverse events (complications, and revision surgeries), patient-reported outcomes measures (American shoulder and elbow surgeons score), and range of motion, including forward flexion (FF), external rotation, and internal rotation (IR).

RESULTS

Eight studies with a total of 504 patients met the above inclusion criteria. HA was shown to have a lower rate of complications (11.60% vs. 29.80%, odds ratio = 0.39, P < 0.001) and revision surgeries (7.70% vs. 17.60%, odds ratio = 0.33, P = 0.05) relative to aTSA at an average follow-up of 7.9 years. Better postoperative FF (mean difference = 19°; P < 0.001) and IR (standardized mean difference = 1°, P = 0.05) was seen in the HA group despite no observed difference at baseline. No difference was seen in external rotation (mean difference = 3°, P = 0.44) or American shoulder and elbow surgeons score (mean difference = 9.56, P = 0.17) between the two groups.

CONCLUSION

This study supports HA and aTSA as viable surgical options for patients with shoulder osteonecrosis. In the currently available literature, HA had lower rates of complications and revision surgeries along with better observed postoperative FF and IR compared with aTSA. However, larger cohort studies and randomized controlled trials comparing these two procedures in patients with shoulder osteonecrosis are needed to establish clinical guidelines for this relatively rare pathology.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.