Is Femoral Fracture Healing Really Compromised in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis? Comparison Study Between Rheumatoid and Non-rheumatoid Arthritis Patients.

Abstract

In patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), some problems might occur in fracture healing; however, clinical evidence is limited. Therefore, we compared the time to union and complication rate of femoral fractures between RA and non-RA patients. This study included 42 RA patients who underwent osteosynthesis for femoral trochanter or shaft fracture. For comparison with the RA group, 126 non-RA patients were selected as a control group. The RA group was divided into the trochanteric (RA group I) and shaft fracture group (RA group II) for comparison with each control group (control groups I and II). We analyzed risk factors for nonunion or delayed union and divided patients according to whether atypical or ordinary fracture in shaft fracture. Time to union (<i>p</i> = 0.823) and complication rate (<i>p</i> = 0.440) did not differ significantly between RA group I and control group I. A significantly longer time to union (<i>p</i> = 0.001) and higher nonunion rate (<i>p</i> = 0.013) were observed in RA group II compared with control group II. The presence of RA (<i>p</i> = 0.040) and atypical femoral fracture (<i>p</i> = 0.006) were significant risk factors for nonunion or delayed union. The high prevalence of atypical femoral fracture among the femur shaft fractures in the RA patients was considered a significant risk factor for nonunion and delayed union.