Relationship between femoral anteversion and osteoarthritis of the hip.

The purpose of this study was to establish a relationship between the magnitude of femoral anteversion and osteoarthritis of the hip. Sixteen osteoarthritic subjects were compared with 18 control subjects by an improved computed tomography (CT) scanning technique. Femoral anteversion was accurately determined with little radiation exposure. There was no significant difference in femoral anteversion between arthritic subjects and a "normal" control population. There was no significant difference in femoral anteversion between the involved and the uninvolved hips of these subjects with osteoarthritis. These results suggest that performing a derotational femoral osteotomy to prevent osteoarthritis is not indicated. The cause of primary osteoarthritis is multifactorial and does not depend solely on preexistence of higher femoral anteversion.