Outcomes in Nonagenarians with Hip Fractures Treated Conservatively and Surgically

Predictive Model of Recovery to Prefracture Activities-of-Daily-Living Status One Year after Fragility Hip Fracture

Background and Objectives: Achieving prefracture functional status is a critical objective following a hip fracture, yet fewer than half of patients reach this milestone. The adoption of tools for assessing functional outcomes is increasingly recognized as essential for evaluating recovery following treatment for fragility hip fractures. We developed multivariable clinical prediction criteria to estimate the likelihood of patients regaining their prefracture activities-of-daily-living (ADL) status one year after sustaining a fragility hip fracture. Materials and Methods: A retrospective cohort of patients treated for fragility hip fractures at a university-affiliated tertiary care center between February 2017 and April 2019 served as the basis for developing and internally validating the clinical prediction criteria. We applied a multivariable fractional polynomial method to integrate several continuous predictors into a binary logistic regression model. Results: The study included 421 patients, 324 (77%) of whom reported regaining their prefracture activities-of-daily-living level one year after experiencing fragility hip fractures. Significant predictors, such as the prefracture Barthel index, EQ-VAS score, and treatment modality, were incorporated into the predictive model. The model demonstrated excellent discriminative power (AuROC of 0.86 [95% CI 0.82-0.91]) and satisfactory calibration. Conclusions: The predictive model has significant discriminative ability with good calibration and provides clinicians with a means to forecast the recovery trajectories of individual patients one year after a fragility hip fracture, which could be useful because prompt clinical decision-making is aided by this information. Patients and caregivers can also be counseled and encouraged to follow up with the medical activities and interventions deemed essential by doctors who used the prediction tool. Access to the model is provided through a web application. External validation is warranted in order to prove its applicability and generalizability.

Prognostic Factors for Functional Recovery at 1-Year Following Fragility Hip Fractures

Background

The main objective of treating fragility hip fractures is to maximize the patients' ability to return to their basic activities of daily living (ADL) levels. This study explored prognostic factors associated with the ability to recover pre-fracture ADL levels at 1 year after fragility hip fractures.

Methods

We retrospectively recruited patients admitted with fragility hip fractures between July 2016 and September 2018. Details of the following were extracted from electronic medical records: age, sex, body mass index; pre-fracture Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI), Barthel index, and EuroQol-Visual Analog Scale (EQ-VAS) scores; pre-fracture ambulatory status; and fracture type and treatment. The primary endpoint was the ability to return to the pre-fracture ADL status at 1 year. Multivariable logistic regression analysis assessed the prognostic ability of predictors.

Results

Of 405 patients, 284 (70.1%) managed to return to their pre-fracture ADL status. Multivariable logistic regression analysis demonstrated that the predictor with the most apparent effect size was pre-fracture EQ-VAS scores ≥ 65 (multivariable odds ratio [mOR], 12.90; p = 0.03). Other influential predictors were CCI scores < 5 (mOR, 1.96; p = 0.01) and surgical treatment for the hip fracture.

Conclusions

Three prognostic factors can predict a hip fracture patient's ability to return to the pre-fracture ambulatory status at 1 year. They are the patient's CCI score, operative treatment for the hip fracture, and the pre-fracture EQ-VAS score. This information could be used to develop a clinical prediction model based on the prognostic factors.

Orthogeriatric co-managements lower early mortality in long-lived elderly hip fracture: a post-hoc analysis of a prospective study

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the clinical effectiveness of orthogeriatric co-management care in long-lived elderly hip fracture patients (age ≥ 90).

METHODS

Secondary analysis was conducted in long-lived hip fracture patients between 2018 to 2019 in 6 hospitals in Beijing, China. Patients were divided into the orthogeriatric co-management group (CM group) and traditional consultation mode group (TC group) depending on the management mode. With 30-day mortality as the primary outcome, multivariate regression analyses were performed after adjusting for potential covariates. 30-day mobility and quality of life were compared between groups.

RESULTS

A total of 233 patients were included, 223 of whom completed follow-up (125 in CM group, 98 in TC group). The average age was 92.4 ± 2.5 years old (range 90-102). The 30-day mortality in CM group was significantly lower than that in TC group after adjustments for (2.4% vs. 10.2%; OR = 0.231; 95% CI 0.059 ~ 0.896; P = 0.034). The proportion of patients undergoing surgery and surgery performed within 48 h also favored the CM group (97.6% vs. 85.7%, P = 0.002; 74.4% vs. 24.5%, P < 0.001; respectively). In addition, much more patients in CM group could walk with or without aids in postoperative 30 days than in the TC group (87.7% vs. 60.2%, P < 0.05), although differences were not found after 1-year follow-up. And there was no significant difference in total cost between the two groups (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

For long-lived elderly hip fracture patients, orthogeriatric co-management care lowered early mortality, improved early mobility and compared with the traditional consultation mode.

Ultra-old patients and long-term survival after hip fracture: a real-world assessment

It's still undetermined whether ultra-old persons, aged >90 years, are able to tolerate hip fracture surgical stress while maintaining their functional reserve, and even fewer studies have investigated the role of frailty on the risk of mortality, disability, or morbidity in the ultra-old. This is a prospective study performed at the Orthogeriatrics Ward of the IRCCS Policlinico San Martino (Genoa, Italy) that consecutively enrolled 205 older adult patients with hip fractures due to low-energy trauma. Namely, 85 patients were categorized as ultra-old, and 120 patients (64-89 years) were the younger control group. Demographic data, perioperative data, and rehabilitation data were collected. Here we estimated the overall survival and related predictive variables in hospitalized ultra-old hip fracture patients based on a methodologically robust frailty stratification (Rockwood 40-item tool). The median OS for the ultra-old was 18.7 months, which also showed a doubled 1-year mortality risk. Our findings assessed that frailty in the presence of malnutrition, delayed verticalization, and post-operative respiratory complications was associated with a two-fold increase in the risk of long-term mortality, irrespective of advanced chronological age in the ultra-old. Although the higher mortality rate in these patients may be related to a priori lower life expectancy, chronological age alone is an insufficient prognostic determinant for unfavorable outcomes. Our multicomponent prognostic score can be used in combination to stratify frailty in the ultra-old for timely screening and to deliver goals of care discussions prior to surgery, potentially targeting new orthogeriatric pathways for the improvement of appropriateness and treatment intensity.

Incidence and risk factors for postoperative nosocomial pneumonia in elderly patients with hip fractures: A single-center study

Objective

Postoperative nosocomial pneumonia is a terrible complication, especially for elderly patients. This study attempts to investigate the incidence and risk factors for postoperative nosocomial pneumonia and its influence on hospitalization stay in elderly patients with hip fractures.

Methods

This study retrospectively retrieved hospitalization records of patients who presented a hip fracture and underwent surgeries in our institution between January 2014 and December 2021. Postoperative new-onset pneumonia was determined in accordance with discharge diagnosis. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to identify the associated risk factors with pneumonia, and its influence on total hospitalization stay or postoperative hospitalization stay was investigated by multivariate linear regression analyses.

Results

Totally, 808 patients were included, among whom 54 developed a pneumonia representing the incidence rate of 6.7% (95% CI, 5.0%-8.4%). Six factors were identified as independently associated with pneumonia, including advanced age (OR, 1.50 for each 10-year increment), history of chronic respiratory disease (OR, 4.61), preoperative DVT (OR, 3.51), preoperative delay to operation (OR, 1.07 for each day), surgical duration ≥120 min (OR, 4.03) and arthroplasty procedure (OR, 4,39). When adjusted for above confounders, pneumonia was significantly positively associated with total hospitalization stay (standardized coefficient, 0.110; p < 0.001) and postoperative hospitalization stay (standardized coefficient, 0.139; p < 0.001).

Conclusions

This study identified multiple factors associated with postoperative pneumonia and its influence on prolonging hospitalization stay, which would facilitate preventive targeted intervention into implementation for individuals with different risk profiles.

Operative Versus Nonoperative Management of Unstable Spine Fractures in the Elderly: Outcomes and Mortality

STUDY DESIGN

Retrospective cohort study.

OBJECTIVE

To assess outcomes and mortality in elderly patients following unstable spine fractures depending on treatment modality.

SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA

Operative management of unstable spine fractures in the elderly remains controversial due to increased risk of perioperative complications. Mortality rates after operative versus nonoperative treatment of these injuries have not been well-characterized.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Patients aged above 65 with unstable spine fractures without neurologic injury from 2015 to 2021 were identified from the Clinformatics ® Data Mart (CDM) Database. Demographics, complications, and mortality were collected. Multivariable logistic regression was used to adjust for the effect of baseline characteristics on mortality following unstable fracture diagnosis.

RESULTS

Of the 3688 patients included, 1330 (36.1%) underwent operative management and 2358 (63.9%) nonoperative. At baseline, nonoperative patients were older, female, had higher Elixhauser comorbidity scores, and were more likely to have a cervical fracture. Operative patients had a longer length of stay in the hospital compared with nonoperative patients (9.7 vs. 7.7 days; P <0.001). Although patients in the operative group had higher rates of readmission at 30, 60, 90, and 120 days after diagnosis ( P <0.01), they had lower mortality rates up to five years after injury. After adjusting for covariates, nonoperative patients had a 60% greater risk of mortality compared with operative patients (hazard ratio: 1.60, 95% confidence interval: 1.40-1.78, P <0.001). After propensity score matching, operative patients age 65 to 85 had greater survivorship compared with their nonoperative counterparts.

CONCLUSIONS

Elderly patients with an unstable spine fracture who undergo surgery experience lower mortality rates up to five years postdiagnosis compared with patients who received nonoperative management, despite higher hospital readmission rates and an overall perioperative complication rate of 37.3%. Operating on elderly patients with unstable spine fractures may outweigh the risks and should be considered as a viable treatment option in appropriately selected patients.