Patient Survey of Weight-Bearing and Physical Activity After In Situ Pinning for Slipped Capital Femoral Epiphysis

Patients with slipped capital femoral epiphysis (SCFE) are often instructed to use crutches and restrict their activities after surgery. In the retrospective study reported here, we determined actual duration of crutch use and activity restriction in patients with SCFE treated with in situ pinning. Forty-three patients (mean age, 14.1 years) responded to a questionnaire. Four patients (9%) never used crutches, and 29 patients (67%) used crutches for 4 weeks or less. Three patients (7%) never restricted their activity, and 29 patients (67%) had resumed full activities, including sports, by 6 months. None of the patients had any postoperative complications. Although these results suggest that early resumption of activities, which would be beneficial to these typically obese patients, is possible without detrimental effects, further investigation is needed before an algorithm for postoperative rehabilitation can be presented.