Consequences of hip fracture among Thai women aged 50 years and over: a prospective study.
OBJECTIVE
To compare post-discharge outcomes of hip-fractured Thai women aged 50 and over with age and sex-matched controls.


METHODS
From 1995 to 1997, 60 Thai women aged 50 years and over with hip fracture who had been admitted to the King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital and their age and sex-matched controls (n = 60) were recruited in a case-control study. These 120 patients were followed for at least 1 year after discharge from the hospital by telephone and/or mailed questionnaire to obtain information about outcomes including death, dependency status and new fracture. Relatives of missing subjects were contacted and interviewed about the outcome status of the patients.


RESULTS
The mean age (SD) of those with and without hip fracture was 71.7 (7.6) and 71.2 (8) years, respectively. Of these 120 subjects, 3 cases and 3 controls could not be contacted. The longest follow-up period was 32 months. Means periods (SD) of follow-up among cases and controls were 18.8 (6.7) and 18.1 (6.6) months, respectively. Eleven cases and 5 controls died during the follow-up period. Seven cases and 3 controls died within 1 year after hospitalisation. The survival rate of the cases clearly separated from that of the controls after 1 year. There was a statistical significance of survival between the cases and controls (p < 0.05). The mean (SD) BAI and CAI scores one year after discharge of hip fractured subjects (n = 50) were 17.3 (3.4) and 5.5 (2.3), respectively. The mean (SD) BAI and CAI scores one year after discharge of the control subjects (n = 54) were 16.9 (5) and 5.3 (2.5), respectively. There was no statistically significant difference between dependency status among the two groups. Three (5.2%) cases and one (1.8%) control had new fractures during the follow-up period (no statistical significance).


CONCLUSIONS
This study showed that appropriate management of hip fracture could maintain the dependency status of hip-fractured women for one year. However, Thai women aged 50 years and over with hip fracture had a higher mortality rate than those without hip fracture which suggests that hip fracture might be a sign of poor health status among these elderly women.
Jitapunkul
S
S
Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.
Yuktanandana
P
P
D000368:Aged; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006620:Hip Fractures / Q000401:mortality*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013785:Thailand / Q000453:epidemiology