Outcome of hip fractures among elderly subjects.
This paper reports a retrospective study (1979-1995) on 200 patients (154 women and 46 men), 50-101 years old, who received medical attention because of unilateral hip fracture. Nine women and four men fractured twice. In 75% of women and 90% of men, surgery was carried out between one and five days after fracture. A non significant greater proportion of women (14/154) than men (6/46) died in the first year after injury (chi 2 = 3.459, P = 0.062). Survival was assessed using Cox proportional hazards model. Survival was a function of age (P = 0.000) and sex (P = 0.008). After adjustment to a common mean age (79 years), the median survivals for men and women were 3.9 and 8.4 years, respectively. Controlled concurrent life-threatening diseases, the kind of fracture [medial (subcapital and transcervical) or lateral (inter- and subtrochanteric)] and the type of prosthesis (total/partial articulation replacement) had no significant impact on survival. No differences in evolution were observed: 80% returned to their ambulatory status before injury, 8.5% required walking aids and 5.5% could not walk. The overall information afforded by this study suggests that with worldwide improvement of hip fracture outcome, the cost/effectiveness of surgical treatment of hip fracture may become, from the standpoint of public health investment, a favorable alternative with respect to cost/effectiveness of prevention-treatment measures.
Centro de Estudios Climatéricos, Facultad de Ciencias Médicas, Rosario and Clínica San Nicolás, Argentina.
J A
JA
Cipitria
M M
MM
Sosa
S M
SM
Pezzotto
R C
RC
Puche
R
R
Bocanera
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D005260:Female; D006620:Hip Fractures / Q000601:surgery*; D006622:Hip Prosthesis; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012044:Regression Analysis; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome