| Authors | J Galea S Zammit M Abela C Grixti |
| Abstract | Aim: The most common emergency admissions to the department of orthopaedics are elderly patients with proximal femoral fractures. This study looked at the mortality rate over one year in such patients over the age of 65 years admitted to the Department of Orthopaedics, St Lukes Hospital, Malta. Various factors affecting the mortality rate were assessed. Method: Data was collected for the periods January - June 2004 and January - June 2005. The medical records of all patients over the age of 65 years admitted to the department were reviewed. Variables assessed included: age, sex, length of time from admission to operation, fracture type (subcapital, intertrochanteric, subtrochanteric), fixation method used, patients pre-morbid condition (American Society of Anaesthesiologists Score, presence or otherwise of dementia, past medical and surgical history), blood paramenters pre- and post-operatively, the need for blood transfusion, type of anaesthesia used, intra- and post-operative events. The patients morbidity and mortality after one year had elapsed was noted. Results: 118 patients were collected for the period January - June 2004. Of these , records of 6 patients could not be traced and 29 patients were deceased giving a mortality rate of 0.26. 188 patients were collected for the period January - June 2005. A similar mortality rate was recorded here. Conclusion: Various factors influence the mortality rate in elderly patients with proximal femoral fractures. Careful pre-operative assessment and optimization help to decrease patient morbidity and mortality. |
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| Journal | Malta Medical Journal |
| Volume | 15 Issue 1-2/suppl. 2003 |
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| Key words | femoral neck, fracture, orthopaedics, mortality |