A SUBJECTIVE HEALTH INDICATOR FOR FOLLOW-UP - A RANDOMIZED TRIAL AFTER TREATMENT OF DISPLACED INTRACAPSULAR HIP-FRACTURES

We report a randomised prospective trial of the early results of three types of treatment for displaced intracapsular hip fractures, We used a questionnaire sent to patients at about six months (Nottingham Heal th Profile, NHP) in addition to clinical assessments. There was a 67.4 % usable response to the questionnaire, similar to that in other studi es using the NHP. There were more responders from younger patients, th ose walking independently before injury and those with higher mental t est scores on admission. In the younger group (65 to 79 years) we foun d a trend for better scores in most NHP indices after the use of a bip olar prosthesis rather than a unipolar prosthesis or internal fixation , particularly for social function, pain and physical mobility. Postal assessment using the NHP gave a satisfactory response rate even in th e elderly, and can provide an extra assessment to complement or replac e hospital follow-up in some circumstances.