Intertrochanteric osteotomy for osteoarthritis of the hip. A radiological assessment of non-compressive and compressive methods.

A radiological review of two groups of intertrochanteric osteotomies of the femur for primary osteoarthritis of the hip has been made. Each group oroginally consisted of forty-one hips. In one group a Wainwright straight V-spline without compression had been used for fixation, and in the other group an AO angled plate with compression. The time for bony union was equal in the two groups but the incidence of non-union was lower in the AO group. Regression of cysts and of bone sclerosis was more frequent in the Wainwright group, possible as a consequence of the greater medial displacement and varus angulation.