Proximal femoral fractures in the elderly: does operative delay for medical reasons affect short-term outcome?

Forty patients over 65 years of age with fractures of the proximal femur, whose operation was delayed more than 24 hours after admission for medical reasons, were studied. Length of post-operative stay on the orthopaedic wards, mobility after one month and need for continuing supervision by the geriatric services, after discharge from the orthopaedic wards, were compared with a matched group in whom there was no delay. There were no significant differences between the results of the two groups, suggesting that, if medical conditions are adequately treated before operative fixation of fractures of the proximal femur in elderly patients, the short-term outcome is not adversely affected.