Clinical outcomes of total hip arthroplasty after femoral neck fractures vs. osteoarthritis at one year follow up-A comparative, retrospective study.

Purpose: The objective of the study is to determine if there was a difference in medical complications and in-hospital mortality among the patients who underwent THA for femoral neck fracture relative to same procedure for elective patients with coxarthrosis.

Methods: We compared characteristics and short-term outcomes during the rehabilitative postsurgical period. We included all patients older than 45 years who underwent THA for primary/secondary hip arthritis and displaced femoral neck fractures type Garden III and IV. Clinical examination, functional outcome and radiographic evaluation were performed during follow-up. Patients were evaluated at the following time points: preoperatively, postoperatively at three days, six weeks, 12 weeks and one year and we registered Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) pain score, Harris Hip Score (HHS), the Western Ontario McMaster Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), internal and external rotation of the hip and operated limb length compared with the opposite.

Results: There is no significant statistically differences between the two groups regarding the preoperative comorbidities. The frequencies of patients experiencing in-hospital and 30-day postoperative complications were generally low and same in groups we studied. The mean quantity of surgical blood loos during the operation was significantly higher in the hip fracture group compared with elective patient group with OA (340.09 ± 86.03 vs 309.43 ± 102.52). With respect to postoperative recovery the patients with THA after FNF were mobilized by active walking a little bit faster as the patient with OA (2.77 ± 1.18 days vs 3.1 ± 1.14 days). The average inpatient hospital length of stay after THA for OA was 11.07 days compared to 13.41 days following a THA for FNF.

Conclusion: Our study showed that THA for treatment of an acute fracture of the femoral neck in an elderly patient can provide results comparable to those of patients who received THA for OA and we found that the results are similar.