OBJECTIVE: The primary aim of this study was to analyze the possible association between delay in receiving surgical treatment and mortality among elderly patients with fractures at the proximal end of the femur. METHODS: 269 patients with fractures at the proximal end of the femur (femur neck and intertrochanteric fractures) who were treated surgically at Hospital São Paulo, UNIFESP, São Paulo, between January 2003 and December 2007, were studied. Sex, age, type of fracture, classification of the fracture, affected side, synthesis used, trauma mechanism, length of hospitalization, length of surgery, associated comorbidities, hemogram at admission, type of anesthesia, need for blood transfusion, day of the week and season of the year of the fracture were analyzed and compared with the literature relating to this subject. RESULTS: The study showed that higher mortality correlated with higher numbers of clinical comorbidities, longer hospitalization and use of general anesthesia during the surgery. CONCLUSION: There was no association between the time spent waiting for surgery and mortality.
Femoral Fractures; Mortality; Retrospective Studies
