Prospective and comparative analysis of internal fixation of femoral neck fractures with or without vascularized iliac graft in young adults

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of 2 surgical approaches for femoral neck fractures in young adults: internal fixation with or without a vascularized iliac graft. Between January 1998 and December 2008, seventy-eight patients presented with a Garden type III (n=38) or IV (n=40) femoral neck fracture. Thirty-eight patients were women and 40 were men, with an average age of 28 years (range, 16-38 years). Fractures were caused by fall injury (n=24), motor vehicle accident (n=36), and heavy weight lifting (n=18). Patients were randomly divided into 2 groups. Group A underwent internal fixation with 2 cannulated compression screws combined with an iliac graft supported by the ascending branch of the lateral femoral circumflex artery (n=44), and group B underwent internal fixation with 3 cannulated compression screws (n=34). Average follow-up was 4.5 years (range, 2-8 years), and mean Harris Hip Score was 92 (range, 62-100) in group A and 84 (range, 40-100) in group B. Average fracture healing time at final follow-up was 4.4 months in group A and 6 months in group B. Two (4.5%) cases of osteonecrosis of the femoral head occurred in group A, and 8 (23.5%) cases occurred in group B. Internal fixation with 2 cannulated compression screws combined with an iliac graft supported by the ascending branch of the lateral femoral circumflex artery is an effective surgical approach for treating femoral neck fractures in young adults to minimize the occurrence of fracture nonunion and osteonecrosis of the femoral head and to facilitate bone healing and functional recovery of the hip.