Uncemented Austin-Moore and cemented Thompson unipolar hemiarthroplasty for displaced fracture neck of femur--comparison of complications and patient satisfaction.

Austin-Moore and Thompson monobloc prostheses are both commonly used for hemiarthroplasty for displaced fractures of the neck of femur in adults. There is an ongoing debate about, which of these prostheses should be preferred. We present a comparison of two groups of patients with this fracture treated using cemented Thompson prosthesis and uncemented Austin-Moore prosthesis. Mortality, morbidity and patient satisfaction in the two groups were compared. Cemented Thompson hemiarthroplasty was associated with significantly better patient satisfaction scores. There was no difference in the mortality rates and hospital stay. Patients preferred cemented unipolar Thompson hemiarthroplasty over the uncemented unipolar Austin-Moore hemiarthroplasty. A larger randomised prospective trial is needed to confirm this finding.