Epidemiology of osteoporotic ankle fractures in South Korea: a nationwide retrospective cohort study (2006-2022).

Purpose: Ankle fractures, ranking as one of the very common osteoporotic fractures, pose a substantial socioeconomic burden. We aimed to investigate the incidence of elderly ankle fractures, refracture risks, and mortality rates in South Korea.

Methods: Utilizing the Korean National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) registry from January 2006 to December 2022, individuals over 50 years with ankle fractures were identified. Osteoporotic ankle fractures were defined using admission diagnoses, procedural codes, and cast-related codes. Incidence rates, refracture rates, and one-year mortality rates were analyzed with standardization adjusted for gender and age distribution.

Results: From 2006 to 2022, annual ankle fracture incidence rose from 193.90 to 278.83 per 100,000 person-years. Women exhibited 1.93 times higher incidence than men, with a notable increase in women. Most common in ages 60 to 69, ankle fracture rates increased until 2019 and after 2020 but decreased between 2019 and 2020. The one-year ankle refracture rates and osteoporotic refracture rates increased from 3.55% and 4.56% in 2007 to 9.32% and 10.37% in 2021, respectively. The one-year mortality rate after ankle fractures decreased from 2.10% in 2007 to 1.49% in 2021.

Conclusion: This study offers insights into the epidemiology of osteoporotic ankle fractures in South Korea, revealing increasing incidence, gender differences, age-related patterns, and trends in refracture and mortality rates over the study period. This study examines the incidence, refracture risk, and mortality of osteoporotic ankle fractures in South Korea using a nationwide dataset (2006-2022). The incidence of ankle fractures increased significantly, especially in women, and refracture rates also rose, highlighting an unmet need for better osteoporosis management.