Epidemiological trends and mid-term to long-term outcomes of acetabular fractures in the elderly in China

PURPOSE

To explore the epidemiological trends in acetabular fracture and report the mid-term to long-term clinical outcomes of the elderly treated with operation.

METHODS

Retrospective study. Patients aged ≥ 14 years with operative treatment of the Acetabular fracture from Jan 2010 to Dec 2019 at a level-1 trauma centre were identified to analyze the epidemiological trends, and the difference in fracture patterns between young and elderly patients (≥ 60 years old) were compared. The elderly patients were followed up to evaluate their clinical outcomes and satisfaction degree (worst to best: 0 to10). The patients were divided into the 2010-2014 group and the 2015-2019 group according to the year of admission, and the clinical outcomes of the two groups were compared to verify the stability from mid-term to long-term after surgery for acetabular fracture.

RESULTS

A total of 1024 patients (mean age 43.35 years, range 14-86 years) with acetabular fractures received operative treatment in this decade. The mean age of the acetabular fracture patients increased from 41.1 years to 47.7 years, and the proportion of elderly patients increased from 5.7% to 24.0%, with some volatility. The ratio of male to female decreased year by year, and the proportion of female patients increased with age. And the anterior fracture patterns were more common in the elderly patients compared to the young patients (P < 0.001). 118 elderly patients (82 males, 36 females; mean age 66.91 years, range 60-86 years) were followed-up (mean 77.4 months, range 35-152 months). The overall mortality rate of the elderly patients was 7.69% (9/118). The Harris hip score of those alive patients was 90.41 ± 12.91 points (excellent and good rate 84.4%). 87 patients completed the SF-12 with a normal HRQoL (PCS 50.49 ± 8.88 points; MCS 55.66 ± 8.86 points). 90.8% of the patients achieved a satisfaction score of 9 or higher. And there was no significant difference in clinical outcomes between the 2010-2014 group and the 2015-2019 group (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, acetabular fractures presented an obvious ageing trend in China, and the fracture patterns of the elderly patients differed from those in the young patients. Operative treatment for elderly acetabular fractures yielded satisfactory and persistent clinical outcomes from mid-term to long-term clinical.