Early Operative Versus Nonoperative Treatment of Fragility Fractures of the Pelvis: A Propensity-Matched Multicenter Study.

OBJECTIVE To compare early operative treatment with nonoperative treatment of fragility fractures of the pelvis regarding mortality and functional outcome. DESIGN Retrospective. SETTING Two trauma centers. PATIENTS AND METHODS Two hundred thirty consecutive patients 60 years of age or older with an isolated low-energy fracture of the pelvis and with a follow-up of at least 24 months. In center 1, treatment consisted of a nonoperative attempt and early operative fixation if mobilization was not possible. In center 2, all patients were treated nonoperatively. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS Primary outcome was mortality. Secondary outcomes were in-hospital complications. Patients who survived were contacted by phone, and a modified Majeed score was obtained to assess functional outcome at the final follow-up. RESULTS At the final follow-up (mean 61 months, SD 24), 105/230 (45.7%) patients had died. One year after the initial hospitalization, 34/148 patients [23%, 95% confidence interval (CI): 17%-31%] of the early operative group and 14/82 patients (17%, 95% CI: 10%-27%) of the nonoperative group had died (P = 0.294). Nonoperative treatment had a protective effect on survival during the first 2 years (hazard ratio of the nonlinear effect: 2.86, 95% CI: 1.38-5.94, P < 0.001). Patients in the early operative treatment group who survived the first 2 years had a better long-term survival. The functional outcome at the end of follow-up as measured by a modified Majeed score was not different between the 2 groups (early operative: 66.1, SD 12.6 vs. nonoperative: 65.7, SD 12.5, P = 0.910). CONCLUSION Early operative fixation of patients who cannot be mobilized within 3-5 days was associated with a higher mortality rate and complication rate at 1 year but with a better long-term survival after more than 2 years. Hence, patients with a life expectancy of less than 2 years may not benefit from surgery with regard to survival. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Therapeutic Level III. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.