SURVIVAL OF NONAGENARIAN PATIENTS WITH HIP FRACTURES: A COHORT STUDY

The objective of this study was to assess survival and factors that may influence survival in nonagenarians with hip fracture.

We retrospectively analyzed 134 nonagenarian patients admitted for hip fractures over a period of 9 years, and reviewed medical records and survival data from the National Population Register. The analysis included demographic data, ASA score, surgical delay, type of treatment, and mortality.

Mean patient age was 92.53 years (range 90-103 years). Of the total, 35.8% of the fractures involved the femoral neck and 64.2% were in the trochanteric region. Overall mortality was 18.7% at 30 days, and 9% at one year. Mean survival for the entire sample was 683±78.1 days, with a median of 339 days; survival in men and women was 595±136.8 days and 734±94.6 days, respectively. We found that type of fracture (p=0.026) and ASA score (p=0.004) were the main factors influencing survival. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis indicated that patients with extracapsular fractures treated by internal fixation had a better survival rate (p=0.047). There was no significant differences between sexes (p = 0.102) or diagnosis (p = 0.537).

Although nonagenarian patients have numerous comorbidities, surgical treatment using internal fixation seems superior to a conservative approach. Level of Evidence III, Retrospective Comparative Study.