Orthopedics Today reports on a recent study by Elizabeth B. Gausden, MD, MPH, orthopedic surgery resident at HSS, which was published in the Journal of Orthopaedic Trauma.

Dr. Gausden and colleagues showed that intertrochanteric fractures treated with the trochanteric fixation nail using helical blade fixation may yield a high incidence of shortening.

"Most devices used to stabilize intertrochanteric hip fractures allow for controlled collapse, or shortening, as the fracture heals. Our results indicate that patients who experienced more shortening along the helical blade returned with worse gait patterns," Dr. Gausden explains. "As hip fracture patients are living longer and expecting a return to higher function than ever before, more research is needed in assessing gait pattern in such patients. Perhaps alternative fixation strategies that minimize shortening, or collapse, will result in improved outcomes."

Read the full article at Healio.com.