Pathological Fractures: Main Causes, Sites and Outcomes a Prospective Clinical Study in Najaf City

The rate of pathologic fractures is increasing due to increased longevity on the one hand and the development of diagnostic techniques on the other hand, which makes any fractures diagnosed and treated well. To assess the causes and clinical profile of pathological fractures in Najaf City. A prospective study conducted at two main hospitals in Najaf city, The study included 79 cases with pathological fractures who were admitted to Al-Sader Teaching medical city and Al-Hakeem general hospital during the period 2017 to 2018. Findings revealed that, out of 892 fracture cases, 79 had pathological fractures, giving a prevalence among all fractures of (8.95%), 11 cases were unfit for surgery and excluded. The 68 cases underwent operative treatment had a median age of 54 years (range 13–82), additionally, majority of the patients aged more than 30 years. Males were 32 (47.1%), females were 36 (52.9%). Femur was the more frequent site accounted for (52.9%) followed by humerus in (25%), while fibula was the least frequent site contributed only (1.5%). Osteoporosis was the more frequent cause, (38.2%), followed by primary bone malignancy (14.7%), metastatic carcinoma (13.2%), metabolic bone diseases (13.2%), while bone atrophy was the least frequent in only2 cases (2.9%). The overall complication rate was 10.3% and mortality rate was 2.9%. In conclusion, pathological fractures represented almost 9% of all fractures in Najaf city. Osteoporosis and malignancies were the more common causes. Complications and mortalities reported in our study were comparable to other studies concerned with this problem.