Abstract

Purpose
In elderly patients, femoral neck insufficiency fractures that occur without a history of trauma are difficult to diagnose and treat, so it is emphasized that early suspicion of fractures and additional diagnostic tests are conducted. Materials and Methods: Between December 2010 to December 2019, 12 femoral neck insufficiency fractures (group 1) were evaluated by comparing them with 50 traumatic femoral neck fractures of a similar age. Along with demographic data, neck cortical thickness, shaft cortical thickness, head diameter, neck width, trochanter width, shaft width, neck-shaft angle, hip axis length, femoral neck index on the simple radiographic image were compared. Results: Seven of the 12 cases were non-displaced fractures, and it took an average of 19.2 days to diagnose the fracture after the symptoms occurred. The height was smaller than the control group at 149.1 cm in group 1 and 157.2 cm in group 2 (p<0.001). The cortical thickness of the medial femoral neck showed significant differences between the two groups: 3.16 mm in group 1 and 4.11 mm in group 2 (p=0.004). There was no statistical difference in the other measurements. Conclusion: Femoral neck insufficiency fracture often has a delayed diagnosis because of the characteristics of the fracture. The cortical thickness of the medial femoral neck in simple radiographic images can help suspect femoral insufficiency fractures in elderly patients when considered with detailed medical history taking and a physical examination.

• Keywords: Femoral neck, Insufficiency fracture, Simple radiographic measurement