Luxatio erecta of the hip: a critical retrospective.

The term "luxatio erecta" has been borrowed from the shoulder to identify rare traumatic hip dislocations in which there is inferior dislocation of the femoral head and inversion of the femoral shaft. A review of the literature is presented along with an additional illustrative case. The mechanism of injury, and the radiological and physical appearance of the patient, indicate that there are two subtypes of dislocation hitherto lumped together under the single term.