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Several baseline characteristics of patients are related to the likelihood of recovering walking ability after hip fracture. The 25-hydroxyvitamin D level seems to be the only relevant modifiable factor even if the effectiveness of its supplementation has yet to be demonstrated.

The study supports the concept that older adults with HF should undergo surgery quickly. Patients with mild-to-moderate cognitive impairment should be primarily considered as the best target for interventions aiming to reduce time to surgery.

The management of hip fracture in older people in the post-operative setting requires a multidisciplinary approach and geriatric competencies. The main goals of the post-operative stage are early mobilisation and prevention of complications. To achieve the goal of early mobilisation a stable surgical repair is essential, allowing the patient to bear weight as tolerated, as well as effective pain control and fluid management protocols, ensuring an adequate volume and avoiding orthostatic hypotension. Due to the age-related decline of the physiological reserve and function across multi-organ systems, patients with hip fracture are at risk of multiple complications. Almost every organ is vulnerable, although cognitive dysfunction, cardiac complications and infections are the most frequent and clinically significant. In most common conditions a systematic approach in the management of hip fracture, through a checklist for each professional and shared protocols, is an established method to improve the quality of the intervention and reduce post-operative complications. The vulnerability to complications of older patients with hip fractures may last for several days after surgical repair. However, this group of patients is at high risk of deconditioning in hospital and thus early discharge-planning based on discharge needs is a crucial component in the management of the acute episode.

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Background Little is known about the incidence of haematoma, and clinical correlates among orthogeriatric patients. Aims This study aims to describe the incidence of haematoma after surgical repair of hip fracture and to identify the clinical correlates of haematoma among orthogeriatric patients. Methods Two orthopaedic surgeons and a dedicated operator using ultrasound technique, each other in blindness, evaluated 154 orthogeriatric patients during their hospital stay. All patients received a comprehensive geriatric assessment. We investigated the concordance between clinical diagnosis and ultrasound detection of haematoma, and then we explored the clinical correlates of the onset of post-surgical haematoma. Results Blood effusion at the surgical site was detected in 77 (50%) patients using ultrasound technique; orthopaedic surgeons reached a clinical agreement about post-surgical haematoma in 18 (23%) patients. The sensitivity of clinical evaluation was 0.66, and the specificity was 0.70. Independent of age, clinical, pharmacological, and surgical confounders, proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) were associated with post-surgical haematoma (OR 2.28; 95% CI 1.15–4.49). A tendency towards association was observed between selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and post-surgical haematoma (OR 2.10; 95% CI 0.97–4.54), Conclusions Half of older patients undergoing surgical repair of proximal femoral fracture develop a post-surgical haematoma. Clinical assessment, even if made by senior orthopaedic surgeons, underestimates the actual occurrence of post-surgical haematoma compared to ultrasound detection. Ultrasound technique may help to detect haematoma larger than 15 mm better than clinical assessment. PPIs’s use is a risk factor for post-surgical haematoma independent of several medical and surgical confounders.

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