Educational Inequalities in Post-Hip Fracture Mortality: A NOREPOS Study

Differences in hospital length of stay and total hospital charge by income level in patients hospitalized for hip fractures

This study examines the difference in length of stay and total hospital charge by income quartile in hip fracture patients. The length of stay increased in lower income groups, while total charge demonstrated a U-shaped relationship, with the highest charges in the highest and lowest income quartiles.

INTRODUCTION

Socioeconomic factors have an impact on outcomes in hip fracture patients. This study aims to determine if there is a difference in hospital length of stay (LOS) and total hospital charge between income quartiles in hospitalized hip fracture patients.

METHODS

National Inpatient Sample (NIS) data from 2016 to 2018 was used to determine differences in LOS, total charge, and other demographic/clinical outcomes by income quartile in patients hospitalized for hip fracture. Multivariate regressions were performed for both LOS and total hospital charge to determine variable impact and significance.

RESULTS

There were 860,045 hip fracture patients were included this study. With 222,625 in the lowest income quartile, 234,215 in the second, 215,270 in the third, and 190,395 in the highest income quartile. LOS decreased with increase in income quartile. Total charge was highest in the highest quartile, while it was lowest in the middle two-quartiles. Comorbidities with the largest magnitude of effect on both LOS and total charge were lung disease, kidney disease, and heart disease. Time to surgery post-admission also had a large effect on both outcomes of interest.

CONCLUSION

The results demonstrate that income quartile has an effect on both hospital LOS and total charge. This may be the result of differences in demographics and other clinical variables between quartiles and increased comorbidities in lower income levels. The overall summation of these socioeconomic, demographic, and medical factors affecting patients in lower income levels may result in worse outcomes following hip fracture.

Trends in Hip Fracture Incidence, Recurrence, and Survival by Education and Comorbidity: A Swedish Register-based Study

BACKGROUND

Hip fractures are common and severe conditions among older individuals, associated with high mortality, and the Nordic countries have the highest incidence rates globally. With this study, we aim to present a comprehensive picture of trends in hip fracture incidence and survival in the older Swedish population stratified by education, birth country, and comorbidity level.

METHODS

This study is based on a linkage of several population registers and included the entire population over the age of 60 living in Sweden. We calculated age-standardized incidence rates for first and recurrent hip fractures as well as age-standardized proportions of patients surviving 30 and 365 days through the time period 1998 to 2017. We calculated all outcomes for men and women in the total population and in each population stratum.

RESULTS

Altogether, we observed 289,603 first hip fractures during the study period. Age-standardized incidence rates of first and recurrent fractures declined among men and women in the total population and in each educational-, birth country-, and comorbidity group. Declines in incidence were more pronounced for recurrent than for first fractures. Approximately 20% of women and 30% of men died within 1 year of their first hip fracture. Overall, survival proportions remained constant throughout the study period but improved when taking into account comorbidity level.

CONCLUSIONS

Hip fracture incidence has declined across the Swedish population, but mortality after hip fracture remained high, especially among men. Hip fracture patients constitute a vulnerable population group with increasing comorbidity burden and high mortality risk.

Increased Mortality in Hip Fracture Patients Living Alone: A NOREPOS Study

Hip fracture is associated with excess mortality, persisting for many years after the fracture. Several factors may affect survival; however, the role of social support has been less studied. Living situation could be an indicator of a person's social support, which predicts mortality in the general population. In this longitudinal cohort study, we considered whether living alone was a risk factor for post-hip fracture mortality compared with living with a partner. Information on hip fractures from all hospitals in Norway from 2002 to 2013 was combined with the 2001 National Population and Housing Census. The association between living situation and mortality during 12.8 years of follow-up in 12,770 men and 22,067 women aged 50 to 79 years at fracture was investigated using flexible parametric survival analysis. We also estimated relative survival of hip fracture patients compared with that of the non-fractured background population in the same living situation (alone or with a partner). Higher mortality after hip fracture was found in both men and women living alone versus with a partner (hazard ratio [HR] men = 1.37, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.29-1.44; HR women = 1.23, 95% CI 1.18-1.28, adjusting for age, education level, urbanization degree, and number of children). We demonstrated the strongest association in male hip fracture patients aged <60 years (long-term mortality HR = 3.29, 95% CI 2.25-6.49). Compared with the general population, relative survival 8 years after a hip fracture was 43% in men and 61% in women living alone, whereas relative survival in those living with a partner was 51% in men and 67% in women. In conclusion, hip fracture patients who lived alone had higher mortality than those living with a partner and lower survival relative to the general population. © 2021 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR).

Higher complication rates after management of lower extremity fractures in lower socioeconomic classes: Are risk adjustment models necessary?

Introduction

Alternative payment models, such as bundled payments, have been proposed to control rising costs in orthopaedic trauma surgery. Without risk adjustment models, concerns exist about the financial burden incurred by so called “safety-net hospitals” that serve patients of lower socioeconomic status. The purpose of this study was to determine whether lower socioeconomic status was associated with increased complications and subsequently higher resource utilization following surgical treatment of high-energy lower extremity fractures.

Methods

The National Inpatient Sample database was queried for patients who underwent surgical fixation of the femur and tibia between 2005–2014. The top and bottom income quartiles were compared. Demographics, medical comorbidities, length of stay (LOS), complications, in-hospital mortality were compared between patients of top and bottom income quartiles. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was then performed to identify factors independently associated with complications, mortality, and increased resource utilization.

Results

Patients with femur fracture in the bottom income quartile had longer length of stay (6.9 days vs 6.5 days, p < 0.001) and a higher mortality rate (1.9% vs 1.7%, p = 0.034). Patients with tibia fracture in the bottom income quartile had greater complication rates (7.3% vs 6.1%, p < 0.001), longer length of stay (5.3 days vs. 4.5 days, p < 0.001), and higher mortality (0.3% vs. 0.2%, p < 0.001).

Conclusions

Lower income status is associated with increased in-hospital mortality and longer length of stay in patients following lower extremity fractures. Risk adjustment models should consider the role of socioeconomic status in patient resource utilization to ensure continued access to orthopedic trauma care for all patients.

Socio-economic inequalities in fragility fracture outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prognostic observational studies

Individuals with low socio-economic status (SES) have a higher risk of dying following hip fracture compared with individuals with high SES. Evidence on social inequalities in non-hip fractures is lacking as well as evidence on the impact of SES on health-related quality of life post fracture.

INTRODUCTION

Fragility fractures, especially of the hip, cause substantial excess mortality and impairment in health-related quality of life (HRQoL). This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to investigate the association between socio-economic status (SES) and post-fracture mortality and HRQoL.

METHODS

PubMed, EMBASE and CINAHL databases were searched from inception to the last week of November 2018 for studies reporting an association between SES and post-fracture mortality and/or HRQoL among people aged ≥ 50 years. Risk ratios (RRs) were meta-analyzed using a standard inverse-variance-weighted random effects model. Studies using individual-level and area-based SES measures were analyzed separately.

RESULTS

A total of 24 studies from 15 different countries and involving more than one million patients with hip fractures were included. The overall risk of mortality within 1-year post-hip fracture in individuals with low SES was 24% higher than in individuals with high SES (RR 1.24, 95% CI 1.19 to 1.29) for individual-level SES measures, and 14% (RR 1.14, 95% CI 1.09 to 1.19) for area-based SES measures. The quality of the evidence for the outcome mortality was moderate. Using individual SES measures, we estimated the excess HRQoL loss to be 5% (95% CI - 1 to 10%) among hip fracture patients with low SES compared with high SES.

CONCLUSIONS

We found a consistently increased risk of post-hip fracture mortality with low SES across SES measures and across countries with different political structures and different health and social care infrastructures. The impact of SES on post-fracture HRQoL remains uncertain due to sparse and low-quality evidence.

Pediatric trauma mortality: an ecological analysis evaluating correlation between injury-related mortality and geographic access to trauma care in the United States in 2010

Background

Trauma is the leading cause of mortality in the pediatric population &gt;1 year. Analyzing relationships between pediatric trauma-related mortality and geographic access to trauma centers (among other social covariates) elucidates the importance of cost and care effective regionalization of designated trauma facilities.

Methods

Pediatric crude injury mortality in 49 United States served as a dependent variable and state population within 45 minutes of trauma centers acted as the independent variable in four linear regression models. Multivariate analyses were performed using previously identified demographics as covariates.

Results

There is a favorable inverse relation between pediatric access to trauma centers and pediatric trauma-related mortality. Though research shows care is best at pediatric trauma centers, access to Adult Level 1 or 2 trauma centers held the most predictive power over mortality. A 4-year college degree attainment proved to be the most influential covariate, with predictive powers greater than the proximity variable.

Conclusions

Increased access to adult or pediatric trauma facilities yields improved outcomes in pediatric trauma mortality. Implementation of qualified, designated trauma centers, with respect to regionalization, has the potential to further lower pediatric mortality. Additionally, the percentage of state populations holding 4-year degrees is a stronger predictor of mortality than proximity and warrants further investigation.

Urban-Rural Differences in Hip Fracture Mortality: A Nationwide NOREPOS Study

Higher hip fracture incidence in urban than in rural areas has been demonstrated, but urban–rural differences in posthip fracture mortality have been less investigated, and the results are disparate. Hence, the aims of the present register‐based cohort study were to examine possible urban–rural differences in short‐ and long‐term mortality in Norwegian hip fracture patients and their potential associations with sociodemographic variables, and to investigate possible urban–rural differences in excess mortality in hip fracture patients compared with the general population. Data were provided from the NOREPOS hip fracture database, the 2001 Population and Housing Census, and the National Registry. The urbanization degree in each municipality was determined by the proportion of inhabitants living in densely populated areas (rural: <1/3, semirural: 1/3 to 2/3, and urban: >2/3). Age‐adjusted mortality rates and standardized mortality ratios were calculated for hip fracture patients living in rural, semirural, and urban municipalities. A flexible parametric model was used to estimate age‐adjusted average and time‐varying HRs by category of urbanization with the rural category as reference. Among 96,693 hip fracture patients, urban residents had higher mortality than their rural‐dwelling counterparts. The HR of mortality in urban compared with rural areas peaked during the first 1 to 2 years postfracture with a maximum HR of 1.20 (95% CI, 1.10 to 1.30) in men and 1.15 (95% CI, 1.08 to 1.21) in women. The differences were significant during approximately 5 years after fracture. Adjusting for sociodemographic variables did not substantially change the results. However, absolute 30‐day mortality was not significantly different between urban and rural residents, suggesting that health‐care quality immediately postfracture does not vary by urbanization. The novel findings of a higher long‐term mortality in urban hip fracture patients might reflect disparities in health status or lifestyle, differences in posthip fracture health care or rehabilitation, or a combination of several factors. © 2019 The Authors. JBMR Plus published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.

Educational inequalities in fracture-related mortality using multiple cause of death data in the Skåne region, Sweden

Aim: To assess the absolute and relative educational inequalities in mortality from hip and non-hip fractures in Skåne region, Sweden. Methods: We conducted a population-based open cohort study. People aged 30-99 years, resident in the region during 1998-2013 (n = 999, 148) were followed until death, their 100^th birthday, relocation outside Skåne, or the end of 2014. We obtained individual-level data from the Statistics Sweden and the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare's Cause of Death Register. Death certificates coded with any fracture diagnosis were defined as fracture-related deaths. Educational inequalities were assessed by slope and relative indices of inequality (SII and RII). Cox regression and additive hazard models were used to estimates these indices. Results: During a mean follow-up of 12.2 years, there were 5,121 fracture-related deaths, of which 3,110 were associated with hip fracture. Age-standardized, hip fracture-related mortality rates per 100,000 person-years were 31, 95% confidence interval (CI) (30, 32) and 23 (20, 26) in people with low and high levels of education, respectively (rate ratio 1.4, 95% CI (1.2, 1.5)). Corresponding mortality rates for non-hip-fracture related deaths were 20 (18, 21) and 16 (14, 19) (rate ratio 1.2, 95% CI (1.0, 1.4)). SII and RII revealed educational inequalities in hip fracture-related mortality in favour of highly educated people. For non hip fracture-related mortality, there were statistically significant educational inequalities in people aged <70 years. Conclusions: We found higher fracture-related mortality with lower education suggesting preventative and therapeutic interventions for fractures should pay special attention to people with low-level education.

Social inequality and fractures-secular trends in the Danish population: a case-control study

We examined links between markers of social inequality and fracture risk in the Danish population, demonstrating that high income and being married are associated with a significantly lower risk.

INTRODUCTION

We explored whether the risk of hip, humerus, and wrist fracture was associated with markers of inequality using data from Danish health registries.

METHODS

All patients 50 years or older with a primary hip (ICD10 S720, S721, S722, and S729) humerus (ICD10 S422, S423, S424, S425, S426, and S427), or wrist (ICD10: S52) fracture were identified from 1/1/1995 to 31/12/2011. Fracture patients were matched 1:1 by age, sex, and year of fracture, to a non-fracture control. Markers of inequality were as follows: income (fifths); marital status (married, divorced, widowed, or unmarried); area of residence (remote, rural, intermediate, or urban). Conditional logistic regression was used to investigate associations between these exposures, and risk of fracture, adjusting for covariates (smoking, alcohol, and Charlson co-morbidity). Interactions were fitted between exposure and covariates where appropriate.

RESULTS

A total of 189,838 fracture patients (37,500 hip, 45,602 humerus, and 106,736 wrist) and 189,838 controls were included. Mean age was 73.9 years (hip), 67.5 years (humerus), and 65.3 years (wrist). High income (5th quintile) was significantly associated with a lower odds ratio of all three fractures, compared to average income (3rd quintile). Married subjects had a significantly decreased odds ratio across all three fractures. However, no overall secular difference was observed regarding the influence of the markers of inequality.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, we have demonstrated important, stable associations between social inequality, assessed using income, marital status, and area of residence, and fracture at the population level. These findings can inform approaches to healthcare, and suggest that much thought should be given to novel interventions aimed especially at those living alone, and ideally societal measures to reduce social inequality.