General anesthesia is an acceptable choice for hip fracture surgery

A combined total of 2,550 patients from two multicenter trials found that spinal anesthesia did not provide a mortality benefit compared to general anesthesia for hip fracture surgery.

• Spinal anesthesia was associated with no significant reduction in delirium rates compared to general anesthesia.
• Patients receiving spinal anesthesia did not demonstrate a greater ability to ambulate at 60 days than those receiving general anesthesia.
• Findings challenge the assumption that spinal anesthesia is the safer option for hip fracture surgery.
• The evidence suggests that discussions regarding the choice of anesthesia should involve a risk/benefit analysis with the patient.

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