Time for return to sport following total hip arthroplasty: a meta-analysis

Introduction: Total Hip Arthroplasty (THA) is being increasingly undertaken in younger and more active patients, with many of these patients wanting to return to sport (RTS) after surgery. However, the percentage of patients RTS and time at which they are able to get back to sport following surgery remains unknown. The objective of this meta-analysis was to determine the time patients RTS after THA. Methods: A search was performed on PUBMED, MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library for trials on THA and RTS, in the English language, published from the inception of the database to October 2020. All clinical trials reporting on to RTS following THA were included. Data relating to patient demographics, methodological quality, RTS, clinical outcomes and complications were recorded. The PRISMA guidelines were used to undertake this study. Results: The initial literature search identified 1720 studies. Of these, 11 studies with 2297 patients matched the inclusion criteria. 3 studies with 154 patients demonstrated an overall pooled proportion of 40.0% (95% CI, 32.5-47.9%) of patients RTS between 2 and 3 months after surgery. 4 studies with 242 patients demonstrated an overall pooled proportion of 76.9% (95% CI, 71.5-82.0) of patients RTS by 6 months after surgery. Pooled proportion analysis from 7 trials with 560 patients demonstrated 93.9% (95% CI, 82.7-99.5%) of patients RTS between 6 and 12 months after surgery. Conclusions: Pooled proportion analysis showed increasingly more patients were able to RTS after THA over the first 1 year after surgery. There remains marked inter and intra-study variations in time for RTS but the pooled analysis shows that over 90% of patients were able to RTS at 6-12 months after THA. These finding will enable more informed discussions between patients and healthcare professionals about time for RTS following THA.