Fixation of 220 femoral neck fractures. A prospective comparison of the Rydell nail and the LIH hook pins

Abstract

220 patients with femoral neck fractures were randomly treated with either a Rydell nail (n 110) or two LIH hook pins (n 110). The age, sex, and displacement patterns were similar in both group. All the patients were operated on by orthopedic specialists and followed clinically and radiographically for 2 years or until death. The mortality at 2 years was similar (28 percent) in both groups. Among 154 survivors, early redisplacement or nonunion was recorded in 19 percent of the Rydell-nailed fractures and 32 percent of the LIH-pinned fractures. In nondisplaced fractures, complications occurred in 8/30 Rydell cases compared with 3/16 in the LIH group. In displaced fractures, complications occurred in 21/48 Rydell cases compared with 28/60 in the LIH group.