Incidence rates of fragility hip fracture in middle-aged and elderly men and women in southern Norway

Background: hip fracture contributes to increased morbidity and mortality in the elderly population. As the average age of the population is increasing, the burden of hip fracture on the health-care system is a growing challenge. The highest incidence of hip fracture worldwide has been reported from Scandinavia in fact from Oslo the capital of Norway. During the last decades, efforts have been undertaken to reduce hip fracture risk. Objective: to study the incidence of fragility hip fracture in southern Norway. Design: a validated retrospective epidemiological study. Setting: population-based study. Subjects: all patients with fragility hip fractures aged 50 years or older in 2004 and 2005 in southern Norway. Methods: the hip fracture patients were identified from the four hospitals (Kristiansand, Arendal, Flekkefjord and Mandal) located in the two most southern counties in Norway, Vest-Agder and Aust-Agder County. Age-adjusted and age-specific incidence rates for men and women were calculated. We also explored for seasonal variations and differences between rural and urban areas. Results: a total of 951 (271 men, 680 women) individuals aged >= 50 years with hip fracture were identified. The age-adjusted incidence rate was 34.6 for men and 75.8 for women per 10,000 person-years. Age specific incidence rates were significantly higher in women than in men but only for age groups between 70 and 90 years. Conclusion: age-adjusted incidence of hip fracture in men and women in southern Norway is the lowest reported from Norway and among the lowest in Scandinavia. No differences were seen between rural and urban areas. The number of fragility hip fractures was statistically significant higher in winter compared with the other seasons.