Outcome of revision surgery for failed primary Souter-Strathclyde total elbow prosthesis

Total elbow arthroplasty is used for the treatment of the painful, destroyed elbow joint. With the increase in elbow replacement surgery in recent years, the number of revision surgeries will also increase. At our center, 236 primary Souter-Strathclyde total elbow prostheses have been placed. Twenty-four of these have been revised and were followed up for a mean of 74 months (range, 12–165 months). The postoperative clinical outcome after revision surgery can approximate the outcome after primary elbow replacement. Unfortunately, 8 elbows needed to be re-revised, 7 elbow prostheses loosened, and we had 1 early dislocation during follow-up. Three of the eight re-revised elbows had a third revision. Two other patients had a resection arthroplasty because of deep infection after the first revision. After 5 years, 73.8% of the revised elbow prostheses were still in situ. The lack of other satisfactory treatment options, combined with the satisfactory clinical results, justify revision surgery of elbow prostheses. The absence of intraoperative fracture during removal of the relatively small standard components and the availability of long-stemmed revision components, which facilitate fixation in the impaired bone, both support our preference for the Souter-Strathclyde prosthesis.