Article

PURPOSE: To find out whether patients with femoral neck fracture treated with
hemiarthroplasty differ from those treated with internal fixation regarding
functional outcome, walking ability, pain or short-term mortality. METHOD:
Sixty-six patients aged 64 years or more with femoral neck fracture were included
in a prospective non-randomised trial with two equal-sized groups recruited
consecutively within each group. All patients were treated operatively and
encouraged to pursue an active rehabilitation. They were reviewed at admission,
before discharge and 3 months after surgery. Assessments included demographic
data, length of hospitalisation, post-operative medical complications, activities
of daily living, walking ability, pain and mortality. RESULTS: There were no
significant differences between the two groups in terms of age, gender, ability
to walk, functional status or at admission. The patients treated with
hemiarthroplasty had a longer total hospital stay due to longer waiting time to
operation. They started to walk sooner after operation and walked better during
hospitalisation. Their walking distance at discharge was longer; their
improvement in functional independence, as measured by the Functional
Independence Measure, was also higher, but this difference was not statistically
significant. Observed mortality in the hemiarthroplasty group was lower.
CONCLUSION: A longer follow-up would be necessary to determine whether the
preferable outcomes of hemiarthroplasty persist in the long-term.

Langue : ANGLAIS