The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (American). 2007;89:1170-1176.
doi:10.2106/JBJS.F.00473
© 2007 The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Inc.
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Outcomes of Posterior Wall Fractures of the Acetabulum

Berton R. Moed, MD1 and Jessica C. McMichael, MD1

1 Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 3635 Vista Avenue, 7th Floor, Desloge Towers, St. Louis, MO 63110. E-mail address for B.R. Moed: moedbr{at}aol.com

Investigation performed at the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri

Disclosure: The authors did not receive any outside funding or grants in support of their research for or preparation of this work. Neither they nor a member of their immediate families received payments or other benefits or a commitment or agreement to provide such benefits from a commercial entity. No commercial entity paid or directed, or agreed to pay or direct, any benefits to any research fund, foundation, division, center, clinical practice, or other charitable or nonprofit organization with which the authors, or a member of their immediate families, are affiliated or associated.

Background: The Musculoskeletal Function Assessment (MFA) is a validated, reliable, self-administered questionnaire that is useful for determining functional status. The Merle d'Aubigné score is a clinical measure of hip function. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the outcome information provided by these two instruments after operative treatment of elementary posterior wall fractures of the acetabulum.

Methods: Forty-six patients who had been followed for a minimum of two years after operative treatment of an elementary posterior wall fracture of the acetabulum were included in the study. Functional outcomes were assessed with use of the ten individual indices and total score of the MFA, and clinical outcomes were evaluated with use of the Merle d'Aubigné score. The MFA scores were compared with previously reported normative values and with previously reported values for similar patients with hip injuries. The duration of follow-up ranged from two to fourteen years (mean, five years).

Results: The mean Merle d'Aubigné score was 17 (standard deviation, 1; range, 14 to 18), indicating overall good-to-excellent clinical results. However, the mean total MFA score was 23.17, which was significantly worse than the normative mean of 9.26 (p < 0.001). All MFA indices except hand/fine motor were similarly significantly worse than expected norms. The mean MFA total score was statistically similar to that reported by others for patients with hip injuries. The emotional category of the MFA score was found to be an important determinant of the total score. The Spearman rho correlation coefficient between the Merle d'Aubigné score and the MFA score was -0.62 (p < 0.001). However, the Merle d'Aubigné score data were asymmetric, demonstrating a ceiling effect (crowding of the scores at the upper end of the scale, limiting the ability of the score to demonstrate differences between patients with supposedly better clinical outcomes).

Conclusions: The total MFA scores for patients with a posterior wall fracture of the acetabulum were significantly worse than normative reference values. Thus, complete recovery after a posterior wall fracture of the acetabulum is uncommon, with residual functional deficits involving wide-ranging aspects of everyday living that do not necessarily have an obvious direct connection to hip function. Although the modified Merle d'Aubigné score may be useful for evaluating isolated hip function in patients who have been treated for an acetabular fracture, its shortcomings limit its usefulness as a method for evaluating functional outcome in these patients. Research efforts should be directed toward the identification of the psychosocial and other underlying determinants of functional outcome and potential related treatment interventions.


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B. R. Moed and J. C. McMichael
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