• Yu Liang, Shaojing Liu, Lintao Li, and Fenglin Zhong.
• Department of Orthopaedics, Panzhihua Municipal Central Hospital, Province Sichuan, China.
• Medicine (Baltimore). 2022 Jul 15; 101 (28): e29384e29384.

BackgroundThis study aimed to compare the clinical and radiographic outcomes of the proximal femoral nail antirotation (PFNA) and external fixation in the management of unstable intertrochanteric fractures in elderly patients.MethodsEighty-seven of 114 patients with unstable intertrochanteric fractures were included in this study between January 2015 and June 2019, 46 were fixed with PFNA implant and 41 with external fixator. Patient baseline characteristics, functional and radiographic results, and postoperative complication were documented and compared between the 2 groups.ResultsProlonged operation duration, increased fluoroscopy time, and excess blood loss occurred in PFNA group. The functional results scores seemed higher in the PFNA than external fixation group in the first semester, and thereafter, there was no significant difference between groups. On early postoperative radiographs, better femur neck-shaft angle was acquired in the external fixators device, but the difference did not continue at final visit. The incidence rate of overall complications was 43.5% for the group PFNA and 100% for the group external fixation.ConclusionsFewer postoperative complications occurred in PFNA than external fixator group when unstable intertrochanteric fractures were treated. Nevertheless, there was no significant difference detected in final functional and radiographic outcome between the 2 groups.Copyright © 2022 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.

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