Traumatic Anterior Hip Dislocation in the Elderly: Description and Review of a Rare Trauma

BACKGROUND: Traumatic hip dislocation (THD) is an orthopaedic emergency that requires rapid reduction. THD is generally encountered in high-energy trauma. THD with low-energy trauma is extremely rare, even more so in the elderly. Methods/Results. We report the case of a 72-year-old woman who presented to the emergency department with anterior superior left hip dislocation after a low-energy trauma. RESULTS: The patient was initially treated with closed reduction. Because of recurring dislocation, closed reduction was performed a second time. Magnetic resonance imaging showed no soft tissue interposition. At 12 week follow-up, the patient complained of intractable hip pain and was treated with total hip arthroplasty. The post-operative course was uneventful with a return to pre-injury functional mobility. We also conducted a review of the literature with regard to anterior hip dislocation in the population aged 70 years or more. CONCLUSION: THD can be associated with significant morbidity. Time to reduction is considered essential in improving functional outcomes. In the case of poor functional outcomes, total hip arthroplasty should be considered.