We describe an apparently unreported finding during hip operations: a tear at the insertion of gluteus medius and gluteus minimus. This defect may well be known to many surgeons with experience of hip replacement and hemiarthroplasty for fractures of the neck of the femur, but a Medline search has failed to find a previous description.

We made a prospective study of 50 consecutive patients with fractures of the neck of the femur to quantify the incidence of this condition: 11 (22%) had such a tear.