Effect of anesthesia type on limb length discrepancy after total hip arthroplasty.

A retrospective study of 132 patients (63 spinal anesthesia and 69 general anesthesia) undergoing total hip arthroplasty was performed by 4 fellowship-trained adult reconstructive surgeons to determine the influence of anesthesia type on postoperative limb length and medial offset. Limb length discrepancy occurred in 87.0% of patients who received regional anesthesia as opposed to 47.6% patients who had general anesthesia (P<.001). Differences in postoperative medial offset measurements between the 2 groups were not statistically significant. It was concluded that surgeons operating on patients who receive regional anesthesia should supplement intraoperative tests for assessing hip stability with meticulous preoperative templating to avoid overlengthening the operative limb.