Does Venous Thromboembolism Affect Rehabilitation after Hip Fracture Surgery?

PURPOSE: Venous thromboembolism (VTE), including deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, is a serious and life-threatening complication in elderly (older than 65 years) patients undergoing hip fracture surgery (HFS). However, few have reported on the influences of VTE on postoperative rehabilitation in these patients. This study was performed to determine whether VTE affects clinical outcomes in patients who underwent HFS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively evaluated 330 HFSs in 325 consecutive patients, which were performed from January 2009 to June 2010. From chart review, we identified 15 patients with symptomatic VTE. We compared Geriatric depression scale, Modified Barthel index and Berg balance scale scores as well as 10 meter gait speed at discharge and hospital stay between a symptomatic VTE group and a non-VTE group. RESULTS: No significant difference in clinical outcomes at discharge between the two groups was found, although hospital stay was longer in patients with symptomatic VTE (p=0.012). CONCLUSION: East Asian patients have a low incidence of symptomatic VTE after HFS, and the clinical outcomes of patients with symptomatic VTE were similar to patients without VTE, although there was a longer rehabilitation period.