[Osteoporotic fractures of the proximal femur. What's new?]

Abstract

Proximal femoral fractures in the elderly are still increasing and are almost always associated with osteoporosis. Especially the over 80-year-olds are increasing and at risk in this respect. In the treatment of these patients new knowledge has been achieved over the last years. An interdisciplinary, multimodal approach with early involvement of internists, geriatricians, anesthetists, osteologists, social workers, care facilities and outpatient trauma and orthopedic surgeons seems to generate a better outcome with fewer complications. In cases of suspected proximal femoral fracture diagnostic imaging should include a computed tomography scan of the posterior pelvic ring to detect commonly occurring fragility fractures of the lateral mass of the sacrum. Early surgery within the first 48 h has a significant positive effect with respect to general and local complications and early mortality. Medical and organizational barriers to an early operation, such as anticoagulant medication, limited capability of communication due to mental dysfunction and lack of operation capacity are continuously declining and subsequently complication rates are decreasing annually in Germany. Endoprosthetics are still associated with higher perioperative mortality than osteosynthesis (4.4 % versus 5.8 %). The innovations in the field of implants and surgical technique also contribute to these lower complication rates. While endoprosthetic treatment is still the gold standard for severely dislocated femoral neck fractures, non-dislocated or slightly dislocated fractures should be fixed with a stable extramedullary implant. For pertrochanteric fractures extramedullary stabilization can only be recommended for stable types of fractures. Every instable trochanteric fracture should be fixed with an intramedullary implant. The use of third generation nails has implicated a significant reduction of complication rates regarding cut-out and reoperations. Rotational fixing of the head-neck fragment with angular stable blade systems and the option of polymethyl-methacrylate (PMMA) cement augmentation are promising advantages that still remain to be clinically tested. Endoprosthetic treatment of pertrochanteric femoral fractures still has 3 times higher complication rate and is implemented only in exceptional situations.