Prospective study of the reproducibility of X-rays and CT scans for assessing trochanteric fracture comminution in the elderly: a series of 110 cases.

Background: Trochanteric fractures are common but difficult to analyse in the elderly on plain X-rays. Fixation failures are related to the severity of the comminution, but comminution and the degree of instability are not easy to determine on standard X-rays. Use of computed tomography (CT) improves assessment of complex fractures, but this finding has not been confirmed versus intraoperative data.