Citation

Ekström H, Elmståhl S. Acta Orthop. 2006; 77(6): 902-911.

Affiliation

Department of Health Sciences, Division of Geriatric Medicine, Lund University and Malmö University Hospital, Malmö, Sweden. henrik.ekstrom@med.lu.se

Copyright

(Copyright © 2006, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/17453670610013204

PMID

17260199

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Earlier reports on reduced physical performance and osteoporosis-related fractures have mostly been short-term studies. The aim of this investigation was to examine the effects of fractures on physical functioning 3 years after trauma, the latter being stratified for pain. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: The study consisted of a population-based case-control study including 289 subjects from the "Good Ageing in Skåne" project. Men and women with fractures, aged 60-93 years, were divided into one group with pain (FP, n = 71) and one without pain (FnP, n = 53). Fractures included vertebrae, hip, pelvis or ankle according to the national medical register. A third group of subjects without fractures or pain (CnP, n = 165) was used as control. Pain during the previous month, health variables, lifestyle, medication, use of a walking aid, and sociodemographic variables were self-reported. Walking 15 m, 2 x 15 m, and timed get-up-and-go (TUG)--all at self-selected and maximum speed--and maximum handgrip strength were assessed objectively. RESULTS: Among the FP patients, almost half of the group suffered pain on a daily basis. The subjects in the CnP and FnP groups performed significantly better than the FP patient group in all functional tests. Median time for walking a distance of 15 m at self-selected speed was 16, 13 and 12 sec for the CnP, FnP and FP groups, respectively. Both fracture and pain independently explained lower walking speed (self-selected and maximum) as well as TUG, adjusted for age, sex and co-morbidity in a multiple regression model. Those who had sustained fractures more than 3 years previously performed significantly better in walking 15 m and 2 x 15 m at both self-elected and maximum speed than those with a more recent fracture, irrespective of pain. INTERPRETATION: After 3 years, patients who had sustained a fracture but who experienced no pain performed almost as well as control subjects. Pain and fracture were independently influenced by physical function.

Language: en