The Ascend Flex short stem implant has been reported to have good early clinical outcomes and low revision rates. This retrospective study aimed to evaluate the early to mid-term radiographic and clinical outcomes of patients who underwent primary shoulder arthroplasty with this implant.
Methods
All consecutive patients who underwent primary shoulder arthroplasty with short uncemented Ascend Flex stems with a minimum of 24-month follow-up were included. The primary outcomes were revision and reoperation rate. The secondary outcomes included stress shielding and Oxford Shoulder Score (OSS).
Results
Totally, 151 shoulders were eligible for inclusion. Out of which 73 were anatomic total shoulder arthroplasty, 77 were reverse geometry, and 1 was a hemiarthroplasty. Mean follow-up duration was 52 ± 17.2 months. The revision and reoperation rates were 0.6% and 2.6%, respectively. 1.3% anatomic total shoulder arthroplasty (aTSA) cases and 6.5% RSA cases demonstrated stress shielding. OSS improved from 16.1 ± 8.5 to 34.1 ± 12.3 in aTSA cases (Z = −3.98, p < 0.001) and from 15.6 ± 8.4 to 30.0 ± 13.5 in RSA cases (Z = −3.41, p < 0.001).
Conclusion
These findings demonstrate reassuring outcomes for this implant at a mean of 52 months. Further reports are required to document the long-term outcomes for this component.
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