The Expreience of Treatment of Trochanteric Fracture of the Femur

Rah, Soo Kyoon; Choi, Chang Uk; Kim, Hak Hyun; Yoon, Chi Soon; Lim, Byung Kil

Abstract

It has been emphasized that the treatment of choice for the trochantric fracture of the femur is open reduction and rigid internal fixation to reduce complications by early ambulation. The incidence of trochanteric fracture of the femur in the young age group has been considerably increased in recent years because of increased traffic and industrial accidents. The author treated 38 cases of trochanteric fracture of the femur in the year 1974 through 1979, at the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, School of Medicine, Soon Chun Hyang College. The results were as follows: 1. In sex distribution, 24 out of 38 were males and 14 were females. 16 cases out of 24 male patients were in the age group 20-40 and 9 cases out of 14 female were over 60 years of age. Over all mortality was 7.9%. 2. The numbers of patients of type I and III were 11 cases in each type out of 38 trochanteric fracture. 3. 26 cases out of 38 cases were treated by open reduction and internal fixation and the others were by traction and cast. 4. The applied metal devices were 3 types: Smith-Peterson nail and Thornton or McLaughlin plate, compression hip screw, and multiple pinning. 5. Mean duration of bony union is shorter in the group of open reduction and internal fixation (13 weeks) than the group of traction and cast (15 weeks). The cause of difference is that the 6 out of 9 cases of type IV and V were included in conservative group. 6. The incidece of the complications such as coxa vara, slipping screw, long nail and traction palsy occurred higher in the group fixed with Smith-Peterson nail and plate than the group fixed with compression hip screw.