Femoral neck fractures. 165 cases treated by multiple percutaneous pinning

A prospective series of 165 displaced subcapital fractures of the femoral neck treated with reduction and percutaneous multiple pinning is presented. The method offers the advantages of a short operating time, no loss of blood, immediate weight-bearing and no infection problems. Furthermore the operative procedure can be performed under local anaesthesia. In Garden stage 3 fractures union occurred in 97 per cent and late segmental collapse in 8 per cent. In Garden stage 4 fractures union occurred in 72 per cent and late segmental collapse in 14 per cent. Failures were almost exclusively encountered in the group of poorly reduced fractures which had a failure rate of 77 per cent. In the case of non-union 75 per cent of the patients needed a secondary hip replacement whereas only 16 per cent of the patients with late segmental collapse had received an arthroplasty at the time of the follow-up.