A systematic review of evidence regarding the association between time to mobilization following hip fracture surgery and patient outcomes.

AIMS

Performance indicators are increasingly used to evaluate the quality of healthcare provided to patients following a hip fracture. In this systematic review, we investigated the association between 'early mobilization' after surgery and patient outcomes.

METHODS

Evidence was searched through 12 electronic databases and other sources. The methodological quality of studies meeting the inclusion criteria was assessed. The protocol for this suite of related systematic reviews was registered at PROSPERO: ID = CRD42023417515.

RESULTS

A total of 24,507 articles were reviewed, and 20 studies met the inclusion criteria for the review, involving a total of 317,173 patients aged over 60 years with a hip fracture. There were two randomized clinical trials, five prospective studies, and 13 retrospective cohort studies, conducted between January 1981 and June 2022. All but two studies came from high-income healthcare systems. The definition of early mobilization varied across studies and health systems; and weightbearing status was often not reported or ambiguously defined, making formal meta-analysis of the data impossible. Early mobilization (within 48 hours of surgery) was associated with improved outcomes in 29 of the 33 patient-reported outcomes, including improved mobility scores and improved assessments of daily activities of living. A total of 45 out of 51 clinical outcomes derived from hospital records showed a positive association with early mobilization, including reduced rates of postoperative complications, reduced length of acute hospital stay, and lower mortality.

CONCLUSION

Early mobilization after surgery for hip fracture in older people is associated with improved patient-reported outcomes and reduced length of hospital stay. Standardization of the definition of early mobilization and consistent reporting of weightbearing status would improve future evidence synthesis.