Prevalence of exclusively and concomitant pelvic fractures at magnetic resonance imaging of suspect and occult hip fractures.

Pelvic fractures may occur together with hip fractures as a result of low energy trauma. It is unclear whether they do require special attention. There are conflicting results in the literature about the prevalence of both concomitant hip and pelvic fractures as well as exclusive pelvic fractures. It has been reported that hip fractures and obturator ring fractures are mutually exclusive. To retrospectively analyze the prevalence of exclusively pelvic as well as concomitant hip and pelvic fractures in patients examined with MRI after low-energy trauma in elderly. During 9 years, 316 elderly patients had been examined with MRI for suspected or occult hip fracture after a fall. A fracture was diagnosed when MRI showed focal signal abnormalities in the subcortical bone marrow, with or without disruption of adjacent cortices. One observer reviewed all studies. A second observer verified all studies with hip fractures. Follow-up was available for all but two patients that died prior to hip surgery. The prevalence of concomitant pelvic and femoral neck or trochanteric fractures was statistically compared using chi-squared test for categorical variables. Hip fractures were found in 161 (51 %) patients of which 29 (9 %) had concomitant pelvic fractures. There were exclusively pelvic fractures in 82 (26 %) patients of which 65 (79 %) were on the traumatized side only. In 73 patients, there were no fractures. Occult or suspected hip fractures are not infrequently associated with pelvic fractures. Exclusively pelvic fractures are not uncommon.