Propensity score-matched analysis of enhanced recovery after surgery in total hip arthroplasty for displaced femoral neck fractures

Objective: The concept of enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) has been proposed in recent years, which indeed bring about evident convenience for the patients. This prospective cohort study was aimed to investigate the impact of ERAS on the clinical outcome of patients who undergoing total hip arthroplasty due to displaced femoral neck fractures.Methods: Patients in two periods were included in our research, before ERAS (n = 194) and after ERAS (n = 65). The clinical outcome, such as patient statistics, details of perioperative management, length of stay (LOS), pain, Harris hip score, in-hospital complications, and interim postoperative survival were collected. This retrospective observational study addressed confounding bias using propensity score matching (PSM) analysis. Results: With PSM, 55 pairs of well-matched patients were generated for comparison (conventional vs. ERAS). LOS decreased to 13.0 +/- 3.2 days for the ERAS group, compared to 15.7 +/- 3.5 days in the conventional group. VAS pain scores decreased significantly in both groups, and the decrease in the ERAS group was more significant than that in the conventional group at 3, 7, and 14 days postoperatively. The Harris scores of both groups significantly improved, but were better for the ERAS group than the conventional group at 7 and 14 days and 1 month postoperatively. However, no significant difference was observed at 6 months postoperatively. Addi-tionally, the incidence of complications during hospitalization was lower in the ERAS group than that in the conventional group. No significant difference was observed in the medium-term survival between the two groups. Conclusions: ERAS apparently benefit patients in early rehabilitation by reducing complications and shortening hospital stays but not for the long-term hip function or survival.