Telephone-based assessment of functional outcome scores after proximal femur fracture: a valid alternative to in-person evaluation

Proximal femur fractures are among the most common and severe injuries in the elderly, often resulting in prolonged recovery and lasting functional impairment. Standardized scores are used to assess health status and guide treatment. These are typically completed in person via printed questionnaires. During the COVID-19 pandemic, in-person follow-up was often not feasible. This study investigates whether selected scores can be reliably assessed via telephone interviews. In total 349 eligible patients were contacted via telephone and 6 different scores were assessed for each patient through interview (the Harris Hip Score (HHS), the Lower Extremity Functional Scale (LEFS), the Parker and Palmer Mobility Score, the European Quality of Life- 5 Dimensions- 5 Level (EQ-5D-5L), the Short-Form-36 (SF-36) and the Visual Analog Scale (VAS)). The same patients subsequently attended an in-person follow-up visit two months later, during which they independently completed the identical questionnaires for direct comparison. To calculate the correlation, a paired samples t-test for dependent variables was conducted. The analysis of the scores revealed a statistically significant, strong correlation between the telephone interview results and the self-administered responses ranging from r = 0.92 (HHS) to r = 0.990 (LEFS) ( p < 0.001). The findings indicate that conducting score assessments via telephone interviews presents a valid alternative to in-person responses from patients. This method could particularly benefit immobile or geographically isolated patients. However, contact in person between doctors and patients remains essential.