The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the epidemiology of hip fractures

Abstract

Aim: This study aimed to compare the epidemiology of hip fractures in an elderly population in 6 months of the COVID-19 pandemic and the same 6-month period in the previous year to be able to reveal how the decrease in community activity beyond normal seasonal habits because of the pandemic had affected the incidence of fractures in the elderly patient population. Methods: A comparison was made of the data of patients who presented at our hospital with a hip fracture between 1 April 2020 and 30 September 2020, and those who presented in the same 6-month period in 2019 before the pandemic. Comparisons were made in respect of epidemiology, treatments applied, complication rates and mortality. The demographic data of the patients were examined, and those presenting during the pandemic were evaluated in respect of the presence of COVID-19 infection. Results: A total of 78 patients were treated in the defined study period in 2020 and 71 in the equivalent period in 2019 before the pandemic. No statistically significant change was found in the number of hip fractures in 2020 (p>0.05). No statistically significant difference was observed between the demographic data of the patients, the ASA scores, the treatment methods, or the mortality rates in the two periods (p>0.05 for all). Conclusions: The most significant finding of this study was that there was no decrease in the number of patients with hip fracture during the pandemic in 2020, compared to the equivalent period in 2019. The increase in pulmonary complications during the pandemic period demonstrates the need for special care conditions in elderly patients with hip fractures, which are still seen at a high rate despite the pandemic.