Introduction: Geriatric hip fracture places an increasing burden to health care systems around the world. We studied the latest epidemiology trend of geriatric hip fracture in Hong Kong, as well as the excess mortality for patients who had undergone surgery for hip fracture.
Methods: This descriptive epidemiology study was conducted in the public hospitals in Hong Kong. All patients who underwent surgery for geriatric hip fracture in public hospitals from January 2000 to December 2011 were studied. They were retrieved from the Clinical Management System of the Hospital Authority of Hong Kong. Relevant data were collected using the Clinical Data Analysis and Reporting System of the Hospital Authority. The actual and projected population size, and the age- and sex-specific mortality rates were obtained from the Census and Statistics Department of Hong Kong. The 30-day, 1-year and 5-year mortality, and excess mortality following surgery for geriatric hip fracture were calculated.
Results: There was a steady increase in the incidence of geriatric hip fracture in Hong Kong. The annual risk of geriatric hip fracture was decreasing in both sexes. Female patients aged 65 to 69 years had the lowest 1-year and 5-year mortality of 6.91% and 23.80%, respectively. Advancing age and male sex were associated with an increase in mortality and a higher excess mortality rate following surgery.
Conclusion: The incidence of geriatric hip fracture is expected to increase in the future. The exact reason for a higher excess mortality rate in male patients remains unclear and should be the direction for future studies.
Keywords: Aged, 80 and over; Hip fractures; Mortality.