Abstract: Objective  To investigate the clinical effect and safety of percutaneous prying technique in the treatment of refractory intertrochanteric fractures. 
Methods  Clinical data of 90 patients with refractory femoral intertrochanteric fracture were retrospectively analyzed. They were divided into control group(n=45)and observation group(n=45) according to different operation methods. The control group received open reduction and extramedullary fixation, and the observation group received percutaneous prying closed reduction and intramedullary fixation. The intraoperative conditions(incision length, duration of operation, intraoperative blood loss), operation recovery(length of hospitalization, weight-bearing time, fracture healing time), femoral neck shaft angle, femoral neck length, visual analogue scale(VAS) score, excellent and good rate according to Harris score and complications were compared between two groups. 
Results  The incision length, duration of operation, intraoperative blood loss, postoperative hospital stay, weight-bearing time and fracture healing time of the observation group were significantly shorter or less than those of the control group(P＜0.05). There were no significant differences in femoral neck shaft angle and femoral neck length between two groups immediately after operation, at 6 months after operation and before and after treatment(P＞0.05). The VAS score of the two groups was significantly lower than that before operation at 7 d after operation(P＜0.05), and there was no significant difference in VAS score between two groups at the same time point before operation and at 7 d after operation(P＞0.05). The excellent and good rate of Harris score in the observation group was significantly higher than that in the control group(P＜0.05), but there was no significant difference in the incidence of complications between two groups(P＞0.05). 
Conclusion  Percutaneous prying closed reduction and intramedullary fixation in the treatment of femoral intertrochanteric fracture is effective and safe in promoting fracture healing, improving long-term pain and hip joint function, which, therefore, can be widely used in primary hospitals.

Key words: emoral fractures, percutaneous prying technique, closed reduction