ABSTRACT
Pelvic fractures in the elderly are most commonly low energy osteoporotic fractures or pelvic insufficiency fractures. Low energy osteoporotic fractures are the most frequent pattern of pelvic injury encountered in elderly patients. The Young–Burgess system was devised for use with high energy pelvic ring disruptions. It relates the mechanism of injury to the pattern of ring disruption, and the expected injuries. Pelvic insufficiency fractures are a well-recognized but under-diagnosed clinical entity in older patients presenting with pelvic pain. The use of pelvic binders has largely supplanted use of external fixation in the acute phase of management of haemo-dynamically unstable patients with pelvic fractures. Unstable pelvic fractures are associated with significant rates of morbidity and disability. In general more severe injuries with greater degrees of instability are associated with worse outcomes. Lower energy pelvic fractures in the elderly might be expected to have a more benign outcome but there is evidence that even these injuries are associated with adverse functional outcomes.
