Canadian journal of anaesthesia = Journal canadien d'anesthésie
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Surgical repair of hip fracture and total hip arthroplasty are primarily performed on elderly patients. Patients presenting for hip fracture surgery have a high prevalence of preoperative medical problems and may require medical stabilization before surgery. Regional anaesthesia for hip fracture repair may be contraindicated due to perioperative pharmacologic prophylaxis for deep venous thrombosis. ⋯ Intraoperative instability with hypoxaemia, hypotension and cardiac arrest may follow impaction of the femoral prosthesis and are related to absorption of acrylic cement monomers and pulmonary embolism of fat, air, and platelet-fibrin aggregates. Postoperative deep venous thrombosis is common and the incidence may be reduced with epidural anaesthesia. Operative mortality is less than one per cent and pulmonary embolism is the commonest cause of death.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)