Fixation of femoral neck fracture. Prospective comparison of von Bahr screws, Gouffon screws, and Hessel pins.

We report a prospective study of 214 patients with femoral neck fractures operated on with multiple pinning. The fractures were randomly allocated to fixation with either von Bahr screws or Hessel pins in 1983 and 1984 or von Bahr or Gouffon screws in 1984 and 1985. After 2 years, the failure rate was one third in the von Bahr and the Gouffon screw groups and one half in the Hessel pin group. We conclude that the nonthreaded Hessel pin is inferior to the von Bahr and Gouffon screws for fixation of femoral neck fractures.