ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate clinical effect of long unstable femoral intertrochanteric fractures with locking plate and cable rope.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>From June 2004 to June 2010, twenty-six elderly patients with long unstable femoral intertrochanteric fractures were treated locking plate and cable rope fixation,included 16 males and 10 females with an average age of (58.23 +/- 4.45) years ranging from 50 to 65 years. There were 22 cases for traffic accident, 10 of them for traffic accident with other injury; 4 cases for falling injury. According to Evans classification, 21 cases were in type I,among them 8 in type Ia, 10 in type Ib,2 in type Ic, 1 in type Id; the other 5 cases were type Hrd. Hip function scores were recorded to evaluate the treatment outcomes by Harris hip function score system.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Twenty-six cases were followed-up for 9 to 18 months (means 15 months). The operations were successful. All the patients received functional training for walking without weight loading from 7 to 14 days after operation, and walking gradually in weight loading from 6 weeks after operation,gradually fully weight loading from 12 weeks. The Harris hip function score were 77.31 +/- 13.97, involving pain 39.79 +/- 6.54, function 31.08 +/- 9.45, deformity and activity 3.85 +/- 0.46. The clinical results were excellent in 10 cases, good in 13, fair in 3.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Locking plate and cable rope is suiteable for the treatment of senile long femoral intertrochanteric fractures of every Evans type, especially benefit for osteoporosis patients.</p>