Time trends in hospital stay after hip fracture in Canada, 2004-2012: database study

Early surgical treatment using regional clinical pathways to reduce the length of postoperative hospital stay in hip fracture patients: A retrospective analysis using the Japanese Diagnosis Procedure Combination database

Hip fracture is a common injury in older adults; however, the optimal timing of surgical treatment remains undetermined in Japan. Therefore, this retrospective study aimed to ascertain the rate of early surgery among hip fracture patients and investigate its effectiveness, along with "regional clinical pathways" (patient plan of care devised by Japanese clinicians), in reducing the length of hospital stay (LOS) postoperatively. We hypothesized that performing early surgery along with a regional clinical pathway is effective to reduce the postoperative LOS and complications among hip fracture patients. We examined the data of patients diagnosed with femoral neck and peritrochanteric fractures retrieved from the Japanese Diagnosis Procedure Combination database between April 2016 and March 2018. Patients were divided into the early (43,928, 34%; surgery within 2 days of admission) and delayed (84,237, 66%; surgery after 2 days of admission) surgery groups. The difference in postoperative LOS between the two groups was 3 days (early vs. delayed: 29 days vs. 32 days). The early surgery group had more cases of intertrochanteric fractures (57% vs. 43%) and internal fixation (74% vs. 55%) than did the delayed surgery group. In contrast, the delayed surgery group had more cases of femoral neck fractures (43% vs. 57%) and bipolar hip arthroplasty (25% vs. 42%) or total hip arthroplasty (1.2% vs. 3.0%). Moreover, the early surgery group showed a lower incidence of complications, except anemia (12% vs. 8.8%). Logistic regression analysis using the adjusted model revealed that early surgery and implementation of regional clinical pathways reduced LOS by 2.58 and 8.06 days, respectively (p<0.001). Early surgery and implementation of regional clinical pathways for hip fracture patients are effective in reducing postoperative LOS, allowing regional clinical pathways to have a greater impact. These findings will help acute care providers when treating hip fracture patients.

Comorbidity and risk of infection among patients with hip fracture: a Danish population-based cohort study

Impact of comorbidity on infection risk among hip fracture patients is unclear. We found high incidence of infection. Comorbidity was an important risk factor for infection up to 1 year after surgery. Results indicates a need for additional investment in pre- and postoperative programs that assist patients with high comorbidity.

PURPOSE

Comorbidity level and incidence of infection have increased among older patients with hip fracture. The impact of comorbidity on infection risk is unclear. We conducted a cohort study examining the absolute and relative risks of infection in relation to comorbidity level among hip fracture patients.

METHODS

Utilizing Danish population-based medical registries, we identified 92,600 patients aged ≥ 65 years undergoing hip fracture surgery between 2004 and 2018. Comorbidity was categorized by Charlson comorbidity index scores (CCI): none (CCI = 0), moderate (CCI = 1-2), or severe (CCI ≥ 3). Primary outcome was any hospital-treated infection. Secondary outcomes were hospital-treated pneumonia, urinary tract infection, sepsis, reoperation due to surgical-site infection (SSI), and a composite of any hospital- or community-treated infection. We calculated cumulative incidence and hazard ratios (aHRs) adjusted for age, sex, and surgery year, including 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

RESULTS

Prevalence of moderate and severe comorbidity was 40% and 19%, respectively. Incidence of any hospital-treated infection increased with comorbidity level within 0-30 days (none 13% vs. severe 20%) and 0-365 days (none 22% vs. 37% severe). Patients with moderate and severe comorbidity, compared to no comorbidity, had aHRs of 1.3 (CI: 1.3-1.4) and 1.6 (CI: 1.5-1.7) within 0-30 days, and 1.4 (CI: 1.4-1.5) and 1.9 (CI: 1.9-2.0) within 0-365, respectively. Highest incidence was observed for any hospital- or community-treated infection (severe 72%) within 0-365 days. Highest aHR was observed for sepsis within 0-365 days (severe vs. none: 2.7 (CI: 2.4-2.9)).

CONCLUSION

Comorbidity is an important risk factor for infection up to 1 year after hip fracture surgery.

Missing the first post-operative visit is an independent risk factor for 90-day complication and re-admission following hip fracture surgery

Introduction

Knowing the risk factors for poor outcomes following hip fracture surgery is necessary for appropriate patient care. The objective of this study was to determine if the first post-operative visit (POV) following hip fracture surgery is a risk factor for increased mortality, complications, and re-admissions.

Methods

This was a retrospective review of 285 patients who underwent operative fixation of a hip fracture at an academic acute care hospital. Outcome measurements were 90-day and one year mortality, 90-day complications, and 90-day re-admission rates in patients who missed or attended their first post-operative visit following hip fracture surgery.

Results

279 patients met inclusion criteria and had sufficient data for analysis, of which 213 (76.3%) made their first post-operative visit. 90-day and one-year mortality were significantly higher in the patients who missed their first POV (31.8% vs. 4.2%; 51.5% vs. 12.7%). Independent risk factors for 90-day complications were missing the first POV, coronary artery disease, and lower pre-injury status (ORs = 10.65, 2.80, 7.89, respectively). Independent risk factors for 90-day re-admission were missing the first POV, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease on home oxygen, and lower re-injury status (ORs = 8.04, 5.44, 5.47, respectively).

Conclusion

Missing the first POV was the strongest independent risk factor for 90-day complications and 90-day readmission. Patients who miss their first POV have significantly higher 90-day and one year mortality rates.

Hospital length of stay after hip fracture and its association with 4-month mortality - Exploring the role of patient characteristics

Background

Hospital length of stay (LoS) is believed to be associated with higher mortality in hip fracture patients; however, previous research has shown conflicting results. We aimed to explore the association between LoS and 4-month mortality in different groups of hip fracture patients.

Methods

The study population in this Swedish register-based cohort study was 47 811 patients 65 years or older with a first hip fracture during 2012–2016, followed up for 4 months after discharge. LoS was categorized by cubic splines, and the association between LoS and mortality was analyzed with Cox regression models, adjusted for sociodemographic- and health-related factors.

Results

Mean LoS was 11.2 ± 5.9 days and 12.3% of the patients died within 4 months. Both a shorter and a longer LoS, compared to the reference 9–12 days, were associated with higher mortality (hazard ratio [95% confidence interval]): 2–4 days 2.15 (1.98–2.34), 5–8 days 1.58 (1.47–1.69), and 24+ days 1.29 (1.13–1.46). However, in fully adjusted models, only the association with a long LoS remained: 13–23 days 1.08 (1.00–1.17) and 24+ days 1.42 (1.25–1.61). Stratifying by living arrangement revealed that the increased risk for a short LoS was driven by the group living in care homes. For patients living at home, a short LoS was associated with lower risk: 0.65 (0.47–0.91) and 0.85 (0.74–0.98) for 2–4 and 5–8 days, respectively.

Conclusions

A long LoS after a hip fracture is associated with increased 4-month mortality risk even after considering patient characteristics. The association between mortality and a short LoS, however, is explained by individuals coming from care homes (with higher mortality risk), being discharged early.

Trends in Comorbidities and Postoperative Complications of Geriatric Hip Fracture Patients from 2000 to 2019: Results from a Hip Fracture Cohort in a Tertiary Hospital

Objective

To describe the secular trends in comorbidities and postoperative complications of geriatric hip fracture patients from the Chinese People's Liberation Army General Hospital Hip Fracture Cohort between 2000 and 2019.

Methods

We included 2,805 hip fracture patients aged 65 years or older and received surgical treatment from 25 January 2000 to 19 December 2019. Demographic characteristics, comorbidities, postoperative complications, length of hospital stay, and the time to surgery were extracted and examined in each 5‐year period based on the admission year, namely 2000–2004, 2005–2009, 2010–2014, and 2015–2019. Categorical data were analyzed by chi‐squared or Fisher's exact test, with ordinal data by row mean scores difference test and continuous data by one‐way analysis of variance. Trends in comorbidities and postoperative complications were examined by the Cochran–Armitage trend test.

Results

The average age of the included population was 79.1 ± 7.3 years (mean ± standard deviation), and 69.1% were female. From 2000 to 2019, the proportion of females increased from 59.8% to 73.0% (P for trend <0.05). Hypertension (51.8%), type 2 diabetes (23.6%), coronary heart disease (20.9%), stroke (18.7%), and arrhythmia (11.2%) were the most prevalent five comorbidities. The proportion of hypertension was 27.0%, 45.4%, 53.0%, and 57.2% in each 5‐year period with an increasing trend (P for trend <0.05). The proportion of type 2 diabetes was 9.8%, 22.8%, 23.5%, and 26.0% in each 5‐year period (P for trend <0.05). Similar increasing trends were found in myocardial infarction, arrhythmia, and tumor. On the contrary, the proportion of patients with major postoperative complications decreased from 2000 to 2019, with 23.0%, 14.6%, 6.5%, and 5.6% in each 5‐year period (P for trend <0.05). For each specific postoperative complication, i.e. pneumonia, cardiovascular event, respiratory failure, and in‐hospital death, similar decreasing trends were found (all P for trend <0.05).

Conclusion

This descriptive analysis sheds light on the fact that the health status of the hip fracture population tends to shift gradually. Improving concepts and practices of clinical interventions may help reduce postoperative complications, whereas challenges in the management of comorbidities increase.

Effect of time-to-surgery on in-house mortality during orthogeriatric treatment following hip fracture: A retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data from 16,236 patients of the AltersTraumaRegister DGU®

BACKGROUND

Time-to-surgery in geriatric hip fractures remains of interest. The majority of the literature reports a significantly decreased mortality rate after early surgery. Nevertheless, there are some studies presenting no effect of time-to-surgery on mortality. The body of literature addressing the effect of an orthogeriatric co-management is growing. Here we investigate the effect of time-to-surgery on in-house mortality in a group of patients treated under the best possible conditions in certified orthogeriatric treatment units.

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective cohort registry analysis from prospectively collected data of the AltersTraumaRegister DGU®. Data were analyzed univariably, and the association of early surgery with in-house mortality was assessed with multivariable logistic regression while controlling for specified patient characteristics. Additionally, propensity score matching for time-to-surgery was applied to examine its effect on the in-house mortality rate.

FINDINGS

A total of 15,099 patients met the inclusion criteria. The median age was 85 years (IQR 80-89), and 72.1% were female. The overall in-house mortality rate was 5.5%. Most (71.2%) of the patients were treated within 24 h, and 91.6% within 48 h. Neither the multivariable logistic regression model nor the propensity score matching indicated that early surgery was associated with a decreased mortality rate. The most important indicators for mortality were ASA ≥ 3 [Odds ratio (OR) 3.4, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.35-5.11], fracture event during inpatient stay (OR 2.6, 95% CI 1.48-4.3), ISAR ≥ 2 (OR 1.88, 95% CI 1.33-2.76), and male gender (OR 1.71, 95% CI 1.39-2.09).

INTERPRETATION

Our results suggest that for those patients, who were treated in an orthogeriatric co-management under the best possible conditions, there are no significant differences regarding in-house mortality rate between the time-to-surgery intervals of 24 and 48 h or slightly above. This and the comparatively small number of patients who underwent surgery after 24 h show that an extension of the pre-surgery interval, justified by an orthogeriatric treatment team, will not be detrimental to the affected patients.

Femoral fractures in the elderly in Brasil - incidence, lethality, and costs (2008-2018)

OBJECTIVES

To describe the incidence by gender and region, lethality, and costs associated with the treatment of femoral fractures in the elderly (≥ 60 years) hospitalized in the Unified Health System (SUS) of Brasil between 2008 and 2018.

METHODS

This is a cross-sectional, descriptive, retrospective study of hospitalizations of elderly people due to femoral fractures by analyzing secondary data obtained from the SUS Hospital Information System (SIH/SUS) between 2008 and 2018; for calculation of epidemiological coefficients, we used information from demographic censuses (2000 and 2010) of the Brazilian Geography and Statistics Institute (IBGE).

RESULTS

A total of 478,274 hospitalizations were recorded in the period; the incidence was 1.7 times higher in females (overall average of 274.91/100,000 for women and 161/100,000 for men). The Southeast region had the highest absolute number of hospitalizations and the South region presented the highest annual overall average incidence (224.02/100,000). The average annual cost for SUS for the treatment of femoral fractures in the elderly was R$ 99,718,574.30.

CONCLUSIONS

In the evaluated period (2008-2018), femoral fractures in the elderly had a high incidence (478,274 hospitalizations; 224.02 cases/100,000 elderly), a predominance of females (1.7F/1.0M), a higher absolute number of hospitalizations in the Southeast region and a higher incidence in the South region; the lethality was high (an increase of 17.46%; overall mean coefficient of 4.99%/year); and the costs for the SUS were huge (an increase of 126.24%; average annual expenditure of R$ 99,718,574.30).

Prognostic factors of in-hospital complications after hip fracture surgery: a scoping review

INTRODUCTION

To examine prognostic factors that influence complications after hip fracture surgery. To summarize proposed underlying mechanisms for their influence.

METHODS

We reported according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Scoping Review extension. We searched MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, AgeLine, Cochrane Library, and reference lists of retrieved studies for studies of prognostic factor/s of postoperative in-hospital medical complication/s among patients 50 years and older treated surgically for non-pathological closed hip fracture, published in English on January 2008-January 2018. We excluded studies of surgery type or in-hospital medications. Screening was duplicated by two independent reviewers. One reviewer completed the extraction with accuracy checks by the second reviewer. We summarized the extent, nature, and proposed underlying mechanisms for the prognostic factors of complications narratively and in a dependency graph.

RESULTS

We identified 44 prognostic factors of in-hospital complications after hip fracture surgery from 56 studies. Of these, we identified 7 patient factors-dehydration, anemia, hypotension, heart rate variability, pressure risk, nutrition, and indwelling catheter use; and 7 process factors-time to surgery, anesthetic type, transfusion strategy, orthopedic versus geriatric/co-managed care, multidisciplinary care pathway, and potentially modifiable during index hospitalization. We identified underlying mechanisms for 15 of 44 factors. The reported association between 12 prognostic factors and complications was inconsistent across studies.

CONCLUSIONS

Most factors were reported by one study with no proposed underlying mechanism for their influence. Where reported by more than one study, there was inconsistency in reported associations and the conceptualization of complications differed, limiting comparison across studies. It is therefore not possible to be certain whether intervening on these factors would reduce the rate of complications after hip fracture surgery.

Discharge destination following hip fracture in Canada among previously community-dwelling older adults, 2004-2012: database study

Little is known about post-acute care following hip fracture surgery. We investigated discharge destinations from surgical hospitals for nine Canadian provinces. We identified significant heterogeneity in discharge patterns across provinces suggesting different post-acute recovery pathways. Further work is required to determine the impact on patient outcomes and health system costs.

INTRODUCTION

To examine discharge destinations by provinces in Canada, adjusting for patient, injury, and care characteristics.

METHODS

We analyzed population-based hospital discharge abstracts from a national administrative database for community-dwelling patients who underwent hip fracture surgery between 2004 and 2012 in Canada. Discharge destination was categorized as rehabilitation, home, acute care, and continuing care. Multinomial logistic regression modeling compared proportions of discharge to rehabilitation, acute care, and continuing care versus home between each province and Ontario. Adjusted risk differences and risk ratios were estimated.

RESULTS

Of 111,952 previously community-dwelling patients aged 65 years or older, 22.5% were discharged to rehabilitation, 31.6% to home, 27.0% to acute care, and 18.2% to continuing care, with significant variation across provinces (p < 0.001). The proportion of discharge to rehabilitation ranged from 2.4% in British Columbia to 41.0% in Ontario while the proportion discharged home ranged from 20.3% in Prince Edward Island to 52.2% in British Columbia. The proportion of discharge to acute care ranged from 15.2% in Ontario to 58.8% in Saskatchewan while the proportion discharged to continuing care ranged from 9.3% in Manitoba and Prince Edward Island to 22.9% in New Brunswick. Adjusting for hospital type changed the direction of the provincial effect on discharge to continuing care in two provinces, but statistical significance remained consistent with the primary analysis.

CONCLUSIONS

Discharge destination from the surgical hospital after hip fracture is highly variable across nine Canadian provinces. Further work is required to determine the impact of this heterogeneity on patient outcomes and health system costs.

Urinary retention as a postoperative complication associated with functional decline in elderly female patients with femoral neck and trochanteric fractures: A retrospective study of a patient cohort

Urinary retention (UR) has been recognized as one of the most common postoperative complications after hip surgery in elderly. The objective of the present study was to evaluate risk for postoperative complications of UR in elderly female patients with femoral neck fractures.We recruited 221 female patients (age 85.3 ± 7.0 years) with a history of hip surgery carried out at Toyama Municipal Hospital. UR occurred in 34 out of 221 cases (15.4%). Multiple logistic regression analysis was conducted to investigate the risk factors for UR, including age, body mass index (BMI), serum albumin, cognitive impairment, and activities of daily living (ADL).The results showed significant association of UR with cognitive impairment (P = .005, odds ratio [OR] 4.11, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.53-11.03), and ADL (P = .029, OR 2.61, 95% CI 1.11-6.18), under adjustment with age and BMI.This study demonstrated that cognitive function and ADL were the important risk factors for UR, suggested that the postoperative management of UR is important with taking account of neurofunctional assistance and nursing care in daily living, especially in elderly female patients receiving surgery of femoral neck and trochanteric fractures.

The impact of time to surgery after hip fracture on mortality at 30- and 90-days: Does a single benchmark apply to all?

INTRODUCTION

Delays to surgery after hip fracture have been associated with mortality Uncertainty remains as to what timing benchmark should be utilized as a marker of quality of care and how other patient factors might also influence the impact of time to surgery on mortality. The goal of this study was to determine how time to surgery affects 30- and 90-day mortality by age and to explore the impact of preoperative comorbid burden and sex.

PARTICIPANTS

We used population-based administrative data from a Canadian province collected from 01April2008 to 31March2015. Of 12,713 Albertans 50-years and older who experienced a hip fracture and underwent surgery within 100 h of admission, 11,996 (94.8%) provided data.

METHODS

Time to surgery was analyzed in hours from admission to surgery. Age and the interaction between age and time to surgery were evaluated using logistic regression. Charlson co-morbidity score and sex were also considered in the analysis. Survival was evaluated at 30-and 90-days post hip fracture using a provincial registry.

RESULTS

The average age of the cohort was 79.6 ± 11.2 years and 8,412 (70.1%) were female. Overall, 586 (4.9%) patients died within 30-days and 1,023 (8.5%) died within 90-days of hip fracture. Mortality increased significantly with increasing time to surgery (30-day mortality odds ratio [OR] = 1.03; 95%CI 1.01-1.05: 90-day mortality OR = 1.03; 95% CI 1.01-1.04). Mortality also increased substantially with increasing age; those ≥85 years were 19.63 (95% CI 6.83-67.33) and 15.66 (95%CI 7.20-37.16) times the odds more likely to die relative to those between 50-64 years of age at 30-days and 90-days postoperatively respectively. Further, those who were ≥85 years were more significantly affected by increasing time to surgery than those who were 50-64 years of age at both 30-days (p = 0.04) and 90-days (p = 0.025) post-fracture. Males and those with a higher comorbid burden also had higher odds of dying after controlling for time to surgery (p < 0.001) CONCLUSION: Time to surgery following hip fracture may have a differential effect on 30- and 90-day survival dependent on age. Older patients appear to be at higher risk of dying with surgical delays than younger patients.

Operationalising a conceptual framework for a contiguous hospitalisation episode to study associations between surgical timing and death after first hip fracture: a Canadian observational study

OBJECTIVE

We describe steps to operationalise a published conceptual framework for a contiguous hospitalisation episode using acute care hospital discharge abstracts. We then quantified the degree of bias induced by a first abstract episode, which does not account for hospital transfers.

DESIGN

Retrospective observational study.

SETTING

All acute care hospitals in nine Canadian provinces.

PARTICIPANTS

We retrieved acute hospitalisation discharge abstracts for 189 448 patients aged 65 years and older admitted to acute care with hip fracture between 2003 and 2013.

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES

The percentage of patients treated surgically, delayed to surgery (defined as two or more days after admission) and dying, between contiguous hospitalisation episodes and the first abstract episodes of care.

RESULTS

Using contiguous hospitalisation episodes, 91.6% underwent surgery, 35.7% were delayed two or more days after admission and 6.7% died postoperatively, whereas, using the first abstract only, these percentages were 83.7%, 32.5% and 6.5%, respectively.

CONCLUSION

We demonstrate that not accounting for hospital transfers when evaluating the association between surgical timing and death underestimates reporting of the percentage of patients treated surgically and delayed to surgery by 9%, and the percentage who die after surgery by 3%. Researchers must be aware of this potential and avoidable bias as, depending on the purpose of the study, erroneous inferences may be drawn.

Medical Costs of Delayed Hip Fracture Surgery

BACKGROUND

Waiting for hip fracture surgery is associated with complications. The objective of this study was to determine whether waiting for hip fracture surgery is associated with health-care costs.

METHODS

We conducted a population-based, propensity-matched cohort study of patients treated between 2009 and 2014 in Ontario, Canada. The primary exposure was early hip fracture surgery, performed within 24 hours after arrival at the emergency department. The primary outcome was direct medical costs, estimated for each patient in 2013 Canadian dollars, from the payer perspective. The costs in the early and delayed groups were then compared using a difference-in-differences approach: the baseline cost in the year prior to the hip fracture that had been accrued by patients with early surgery was subtracted from the cost in the first year following the surgery (first difference), and the difference was then compared with the same difference among propensity-score-matched patients who had received delayed surgery (second difference). The secondary outcome was the postoperative length of stay (in days).

RESULTS

The study included 42,230 patients who received hip fracture surgery from a total of 522 different surgeons at 72 hospitals. The mean cost (and standard deviation) attributed to the hip fracture was $39,497 ± $46,645 per person. The matched patients who underwent surgery after 24 hours had direct 1-year medical costs that were an average of $2,638 higher (95% confidence interval [CI] = $1,595 to $3,680, p < 0.0001) and a postoperative length of stay that was an average of 0.610 day longer (95% CI = 0.1749 to 1.0331 days, p = 0.0058) compared with those who underwent surgery within 24 hours.

CONCLUSIONS

Waiting >24 hours for hip fracture surgery was associated with increased medical costs and length of stay. Costs incurred by waiting may provide a financial incentive to mitigate delays in hip fracture surgery.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Economic Level III. Please see Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

Comparative effectiveness of fragility fracture integrated rehabilitation management for elderly individuals after hip fracture surgery: A study protocol for a multicenter randomized controlled trial

INTRODUCTION

Although it is essential to provide comprehensive rehabilitation after hip fracture to restore the patient to preoperative physical functioning, feasibility issues remain. Here, we describe a protocol for a randomized controlled trial (RCT) to evaluate the effectiveness of fragility fracture integrated rehabilitation management (FIRM) for elderly individuals after hip fracture surgery. We also examine the feasibility of applying FIRM in a chronic-care hospital or community-based setting.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

Elderly patients will be randomly assigned to either the FIRM, conventional, or control group for a 2-week intervention period following hip fracture surgery. The primary outcome of this study is Koval walking ability. All functional outcomes will be measured 1 and 3 weeks, 3, 6, and 12 months after the surgical intervention. Researchers will be blind to group allocation, and participants will be blind to outcome. A sample size of 282 participants will be necessary to demonstrate the effect of the FIRM program. After the RCT has been conducted in 3 core hospitals, FIRM will be applied in 6 community-based local hospitals to investigate the feasibility of the program. The data will be analyzed using the intention-to-treat principle.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

NCT03430193.

Time to surgery after hip fracture across Canada by timing of admission

The extent of Canadian provincial variation in hip fracture surgical timing is unclear. Provinces performed a similar proportion of surgeries within three inpatient days after adjustment. Time to surgery varied by timing of admission across provinces. This may reflect different approaches to providing access to hip fracture surgery.

INTRODUCTION

The aim of this study was to compare whether time to surgery after hip fracture varies across Canadian provinces for surgically fit patients and their subgroups defined by timing of admission.

METHODS

We retrieved hospitalization records for 140,235 patients 65 years and older, treated surgically for hip fracture between 2004 and 2012 in Canada (excluding Quebec). We studied the proportion of surgeries on admission day and within 3 inpatient days, and times required for 33%, 66%, and 90% of surgeries across provinces and by subgroups defined by timing of admission. Differences were adjusted for patient, injury, and care characteristics.

RESULTS

Overall, provinces performed similar proportions of surgeries within the recommended three inpatient days, with all provinces requiring one additional day to perform the recommended 90% of surgeries. Prince Edward Island performed 7.0% more surgeries on admission day than Ontario irrespective of timing of admission (difference = 7.0; 95% CI 4.0, 9.9). The proportion of surgeries on admission day was 6.3% lower in Manitoba (difference = - 6.3; 95% CI - 12.1, - 0.6), and 7.7% lower in Saskatchewan (difference = - 7.7; 95% CI - 12.7, - 2.8) compared to Ontario. These differences persisted for late weekday and weekend admissions. The time required for 33%, 66%, and 90% of surgeries ranged from 1 to 2, 2-3, and 3-4 days, respectively, across provinces by timing of admission.

CONCLUSIONS

Provinces performed similarly with respect to recommended time for hip fracture surgery. The proportion of surgeries on admission day, and time required to complete 33% and 66% of surgeries, varied across provinces and by timing of admission. This may reflect different provincial approaches to providing access to hip fracture surgery.

Mortality by Timing of Hip Fracture Surgery: Factors and Relationships at Play

In hip fracture care, it is disputed whether mortality worsens when surgery is delayed. This knowledge gap matters when hospital managers seek to justify resource allocation for prioritizing access to one procedure over another. Uncertainty over the surgical timing-death association leads to either surgical prioritization without benefit or the underuse of expedited surgery when it could save lives. The discrepancy in previous findings results in part from differences between patients who happened to undergo surgery at different times. Such differences may produce the statistical association between surgical timing and death in the absence of a causal relationship. Previous observational studies attempted to adjust for structure, process, and patient factors that contribute to death, but not for relationships between structure and process factors, or between patient and process factors. In this article, we (1) summarize what is known about the factors that influence, directly or indirectly, both the timing of surgery and the occurrence of death; (2) construct a dependency graph of relationships among these factors based explicitly on the existing literature; (3) consider factors with a potential to induce covariation of time to surgery and the occurrence of death, directly or through the network of relationships, thereby explaining a putative surgical timing-death association; and (4) show how age, sex, dependent living, fracture type, hospital type, surgery type, and calendar period can influence both time to surgery and occurrence of death through chains of dependencies. We conclude by discussing how these results can inform the allocation of surgical capacity to prevent the avoidable adverse consequences of delaying hip fracture surgery.

Patient and system factors of time to surgery after hip fracture: a scoping review

OBJECTIVES

It is disputed whether the time a patient waits for surgery after hip fracture increases the risk of in-hospital death. This uncertainty matters as access to surgery following hip fracture may be underprioritised due to a lack of definitive evidence. Uncertainty in the available evidence may be due to differences in characteristics of patients, their injury and their care. We summarised the literature on patients and system factors associated with time to surgery, and collated proposed mechanisms for the associations.

METHODS

We used the framework developed by Arksey and O'Malley and Levac et al for synthesis of factors and mechanisms of time to surgery after hip fracture in adults aged >50 years, published in English, between 1 January 2000 and 28 February 2017, and indexed in MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL or Ageline. Proposed mechanisms for reported associations were extracted from discussion sections.

RESULTS

We summarised evidence from 26 articles that reported on 24 patient and system factors of time to surgery post hip fracture. In total, 16 factors were reported by only one article. For 16 factors we found proposed mechanisms for their association with time to surgery which included surgical readiness, available resources, prioritisation and out-of-hours admission.

CONCLUSIONS

We identified patient and system factors associated with time to surgery after hip fracture. This new knowledge will inform evaluation of the putative timing-death association. Future interventions should be designed to influence factors with modifiable mechanisms for delay.

Feasibility of administrative data for studying complications after hip fracture surgery

PURPOSE

There is limited information in administrative databases on the occurrence of serious but treatable complications after hip fracture surgery. This study sought to determine the feasibility of identifying the occurrence of serious but treatable complications after hip fracture surgery from discharge abstracts by applying the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Patient Safety Indicator 4 (PSI-4) case-finding tool.

METHODS

We obtained Canadian Institute for Health Information discharge abstracts for patients 65 years or older, who were surgically treated for non-pathological first hip fracture between 1 January 2004 and 31 December 2012 in Canada, except for Quebec. We applied specifications of AHRQ Patient Safety Indicators 04, Version 5.0 to identify complications from hip fracture discharge abstracts.

RESULTS

Out of 153 613 patients admitted with hip fracture, we identified 12 383 (8.1%) patients with at least one postsurgical complication. From patients with postsurgical complications, we identified 3066 (24.8%) patient admissions to intensive care unit. Overall, 7487 (4.9%) patients developed pneumonia, 1664 (1.1%) developed shock/myocardial infarction, 651 (0.4%) developed sepsis, 1862 (1.1%) developed deep venous thrombosis/pulmonary embolism and 1919 (1.3%) developed gastrointestinal haemorrhage/acute ulcer.

CONCLUSIONS

We report that 8.1% of patients developed at least one inhospital complication after hip fracture surgery in Canada between 2004 and 2012. The AHRQ PSI-4 case-finding tool can be considered to identify these serious complications for evaluation of postsurgical care after hip fracture.

Hospital mortality after hip fracture surgery in relation to length of stay by care delivery factors: A database study

Two hypotheses were offered for the effect of shorter hospital stays on mortality after hip fracture surgery: worsening the quality of care and shifting death occurrence to postacute settings.We tested whether the risk of hospital death after hip fracture surgery differed across years when postoperative stays shortened, and whether care factors moderated the association.Analysis of acute hospital discharge abstracts for subgroups defined by hospital type, bed capacity, surgical volume, and admission time.153,917 patients 65 years or older surgically treated for first hip fracture.Risk of hospital death.We found a decrease in the 30-day risk of hospital death from 7.0% (95%CI: 6.6-7.5) in 2004 to 5.4% (95%CI: 5.0-5.7) in 2012, with an adjusted odds ratio [OR] 0.71 (95%CI: 0.63-0.80). In subgroup analysis, only large community hospitals showed the reduction of ORs by calendar year. No trend was observed in teaching and medium community hospitals. By 2012, the risk of death in large higher volume community hospitals was 34% lower for weekend admissions, OR = 0.66 (95%CI: 0.46-0.95) and 39% lower for weekday admissions, OR = 0.61 (95%CI: 0.40-0.91), compared to 2004. In large lower volume community hospitals, the 2012 risk was 56% lower for weekend admissions, OR = 0.44 (95%CI: 0.26-0.75), compared to 2004.The risk of hospital death after hip fracture surgery decreased only in large community hospitals, despite universal shortening of hospital stays. This supports the concern of worsening the quality of hip fracture care due to shorter stays.

In-hospital mortality after hip fracture by treatment setting

BACKGROUND

Where patients with hip fracture undergo treatment may influence their outcome. We compared the risk of in-hospital death after hip fracture by treatment setting in Canada.

METHODS

We examined all discharge abstracts from the Canadian Institute for Health Information with diagnosis codes for hip fracture involving patients 65 years and older who were admitted to hospital with a nonpathological first hip fracture between Jan. 1, 2004, and Dec. 31, 2012, in Canada (excluding Quebec). We compared the risk of in-hospital death, overall and after surgery, between teaching hospitals and community hospitals of various bed capacities, accounting for variation in length of stay.

RESULTS

Compared with the number of deaths per 1000 admissions at teaching hospitals, there were an additional 3 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1-6), 14 (95% CI 10-18) and 43 (95% CI 35-51) deaths per 1000 admissions at large, medium and small community hospitals, respectively. For the risk of in-hospital death overall, the adjusted odds ratios (ORs) were 1.05 (95% CI 0.99-1.11), 1.16 (95% CI 1.09-1.24) and 1.44 (95% CI 1.31-1.57) at large, medium and small community hospitals, respectively, compared with teaching hospitals. For the risk of postsurgical death in hospital, the adjusted ORs were 1.06 (95% CI 1.00-1.13), 1.13 (95% CI 1.04-1.23) and 1.18 (95% CI 0.87-1.60) at large, medium and small community hospitals, respectively.

INTERPRETATION

Compared with teaching hospitals, the risk of in-hospital death among patients with hip fracture was higher at medium and small community hospitals, and the risk of in-hospital death after surgery was higher at medium community hospitals. No differences were found between teaching and large community hospitals. Future research should examine the role of volume, demand and bed occupancy for observed differences.