Editorial Open Access
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Orthop. Apr 18, 2024; 15(4): 310-311
Published online Apr 18, 2024. doi: 10.5312/wjo.v15.i4.310
Mortality rate after total knee arthroplasty or total hip arthroplasty in patients with a history of liver transplant
E Carlos Rodriguez-Merchan, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, La Paz University Hospital-IdiPaz, Madrid 28046, Spain
ORCID number: E Carlos Rodriguez-Merchan (0000-0002-6360-0113).
Author contributions: There is only one author.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The author declares that there is no conflict of interest that could be perceived as prejudicing the impartiality of the research reported.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: E Carlos Rodriguez-Merchan, PhD, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, La Paz University Hospital-IdiPaz, Paseo de la Castellana 261, Madrid 28046, Spain. ecrmerchan@hotmail.com
Received: October 24, 2023
Peer-review started: October 24, 2023
First decision: January 6, 2024
Revised: January 22, 2024
Accepted: March 5, 2024
Article in press: March 5, 2024
Published online: April 18, 2024
Processing time: 174 Days and 17 Hours

Abstract

In this editorial I comment on the article by Ahmed et al published in a recent issue of the World J Orthop 2023; 14: 784-790. It is well known that patients who have undergone a liver transplant (LT) may need to have a total hip arthroplasty (THA) or total knee arthroplasty (TKA) implanted. Ahmed et al stated that the mortality rate in these patients was similar to the one of the general population. However, there are three articles previously published that found higher mortality in LT patients who experienced THA/TKA than in the general population (individuals without LT). Therefore, in this Editorial I would like to point out that there is controversy in the literature regarding whether LT patients undergoing THA/TKA have higher mortality than the general population. Therefore, future research should attempt to resolve this controversy.

Key Words: Liver transplant; Total knee arthroplasty; Total hip arthroplasty; Results; Mortality

Core Tip: The existing publications are contradictory regarding mortality rates in liver transplant patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty and total knee arthroplasty. Therefore, this controversy should be duly analyzed in future studies.



INTRODUCTION

Patients who have undergone a liver transplant (LT) may need to have a total hip arthroplasty (THA) or total knee arthroplasty (TKA) implanted. Considering the severity of the problem, several authors have analyzed the mortality of LT patients compared to the general population (patients without LT)[1-4].

THERE IS CONTROVERSY IN THE LITERATURE

In a recent article published by Ahmed et al[1] it was concluded that individuals with a history of LT experiencing TKA or THA had similar rates of mortality than individuals with no history of LT. However, there are three articles which contradict the conclusion of Ahmed et al[1].

In the systematic review and meta-analysis published in 2022 by Kim et al[2], individuals with a history of LT undergoing THA showed higher mortality rates than individuals with no history of LT.

In a retrospective review of total joint arthroplasty (TJA) after LT, Wu et al[3] stated that the mortality risk of patients with LT was considerable.

Ledford et al[4] also found higher mortality rates after TKA and THA in patients with a history of LT than in the general population.

CONCLUSION

The existing publications are contradictory regarding mortality rates in LT patients undergoing THA and TKA. Therefore, this controversy should be duly analyzed in future studies.

Footnotes

Provenance and peer review: Invited article; Externally peer reviewed.

Peer-review model: Single blind

Specialty type: Orthopedics

Country/Territory of origin: Spain

Peer-review report’s scientific quality classification

Grade A (Excellent): 0

Grade B (Very good): B

Grade C (Good): C

Grade D (Fair): D

Grade E (Poor): 0

P-Reviewer: Kumar R, India; Lee YM, Singapore S-Editor: Liu JH L-Editor: A P-Editor: Zhao YQ

References
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2.  Kim CH, Lim EJ, Lee J. Clinical Outcomes following Primary Hip Replacement Arthroplasties in Patients with Solid Organ Transplantation: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Hip Pelvis. 2022;34:127-139.  [PubMed]  [DOI]  [Cited in This Article: ]  [Reference Citation Analysis (0)]
3.  Wu CJ, Brekke AC, Hinton ZW, Kim BI, Ryan SP, Bolognesi MP, Seyler TM. Total joint arthroplasty following solid organ transplants: complications and mid-term outcomes. Int Orthop. 2022;46:2735-2745.  [PubMed]  [DOI]  [Cited in This Article: ]  [Cited by in F6Publishing: 3]  [Reference Citation Analysis (0)]
4.  Ledford CK, Barry KS, Prendergast MB, Sherman CE. Total Hip and Knee Arthroplasty in Solid Organ Transplant Patients: Perioperative Optimization and Outcomes. J Am Acad Orthop Surg. 2022;30:1157-1164.  [PubMed]  [DOI]  [Cited in This Article: ]  [Cited by in F6Publishing: 1]  [Reference Citation Analysis (0)]