Cost of infection after surgery for intracapsular fracture of the femoral neck

Introduction

We investigated the financial and human costs of postoperative infection for intracapsular fracture of the femoral neck at a district general hospital in the UK.

Methods

Data on postoperative infections after surgical treatment for intracapsular fracture of the femoral neck were collected prospectively from June 2005 to April 2009. Infected patients were pairwise-matched (1:2 ratio) with a non-infected group of patients from a database on hip fractures. Costs of additional surgery, duration of hospital stay, and opportunity costs were calculated using Primary Care Trust (PCT) tariffs and PCT-specific data.

Results

A total of 525 patients were treated with total hip replacement (n=110) or hip hemiarthroplasty (n=415). Seventeen patients (3.2%) were identified as having a surgical-site infection. Eight (1.5%) deep infections and nine (1.7%) superficial infections were documented. Compared with the non-infected group, duration of hospital stay and the prevalence of mortality doubled. Repeat surgery and the costs associated with hospital admission were increased significantly in the infected group. Mean financial loss associated with an infected patient was £7,726, whereas an uninfected patient brought £153 of profit to the hospital. When opportunity costs were considered, an infected patient represented £24,397 of lost income.

Conclusions

Postoperative infection after surgical treatment for intracapsular fracture of the femoral neck has a significant negative impact on duration of hospital stay and financial costs, and demonstrates a trend towards an increase in the prevalence of mortality.