Fractures of the proximal femur in Picardy, France, in 1987.

Between 1 January and 31 December 1987, 1178 hip fractures were recorded in the 28 clinical centres, public and private, of the Picardy region (19443 km2, 1.8 million inhabitants). Patients under 20 years and those with metastatic cancer and myelomatous fractures were excluded. Women sustained 853 fractures (age mean +/- SD: 80.2 +/- 10.4 years) and men 325 (age 69.7 +/- 16.0 years). The crude incidence rate per 10,000 person years was 13.4 for women and 5.4 for men (female/male ratio 2.6). These incidences are among the lowest recorded in Northern Europe. Women with trochanteric fractures were older than those with cervical ones, but no difference was observed for men. After adjusting for age and sex, the incidence of hip fracture was greater in urban (10.5 per 10,000 person years) and semi-rural areas (8.2) than in rural areas (5.3). The mean bed-days per patient (+/- SD) was 21.6 +/- 16.0 (quartiles: 13-17-26 days); no difference was observed between sex or age classes. The in-hospital mortality rate was 8.7%, it increased with age and was higher in men, whatever their age. We review the data in different countries, mostly European, to compare with the Picardy region.