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BACKGROUND: Controversy exists regarding the optimal treatment for patients with displaced intracapsular fractures of the proximal femur. The recognised treatment alternatives are arthroplasty and internal fixation. The principal criticism of internal fixation is the high rate of non-union; up to 30% of patients will have a failure of the fixation leading to revision surgery. We believe that improved fracture healing may lead to a decreased rate of failure of fixation. We therefore propose to investigate strategies to both accelerate fracture healing and improve fixation that may significantly improve outcomes after internal fixation of intracapsular femoral fractures. We aim to test the clinical effectiveness of the osteoinductive agent platelet rich plasma and conduct a pilot study of a novel fixed-angle fixation system. DESIGN: We have planned a three arm, single centre, standard-of-care controlled, double blinded, pragmatic, randomised clinical trial. The trial will include a standard two-way comparison between platelet-rich plasma and standard-of-care fixation versus standard-of-care fixation alone. In addition there will be a subsidiary pilot arm testing a fixed-angle screw and plate fixation system. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN49197425.

Original publication

DOI

10.1186/1471-2474-11-184

Type

Journal article

Journal

Bmc musculoskelet disord

Publication Date

17/08/2010

Volume

11

Keywords

Arthroplasty, Replacement, Hip, Clinical Protocols, Femoral Neck Fractures, Fracture Fixation, Internal, Fracture Healing, Hip Fractures, Humans, Orthopedic Procedures, Outcome Assessment, Health Care, Postoperative Complications, Radiography