Spanish National Hip Fracture Registry (RNFC): analysis of its first annual report and international comparison with other established registries

Hip fracture registries have helped improve quality of care and reduce variability, and several audits exist worldwide. The results of the Spanish National Hip Fracture Registry are presented and compared with 13 other national registries, highlighting similarities and differences to define areas of improvement, particularly surgical delay and early mobilization.

INTRODUCTION

Hip fracture audits have been useful for monitoring current practice and defining areas in need of improvement. Most established registries are from Northern Europe. We present the results from the first annual report of the Spanish Hip Fracture Registry (RNFC) and compare them with other publically available audit reports.

METHOD

Comparison of the results from Spain with the most recent reports from another ten established hip fracture registries highlights the differences in audit characteristics, casemix, management, and outcomes.

RESULTS

Of the patients treated in 54 hospitals, 7.208 were included in the registry between January and October 2017. Compared with other registries, the RNFC included patients ≥ 75 years old; in general, they were older, more likely to be female, had a worse prefracture ambulation status, and were more likely to have extracapsular fractures. A larger proportion was treated with intramedullary nails than in other countries, and spinal anesthesia was most commonly used. With a mean of 75.7 h, Spain had by far the longest surgical delay, and the lowest proportion of patients mobilized on the first postoperative day (58.5%). Consequently, development of pressure ulcers was high, but length of stay, mortality, and discharge to home remained in the range of other audits.

CONCLUSIONS

National hip fracture registries have proved effective in changing clinical practice and our understanding of patients with this condition. Such registries tend to be based on an internationally recognized common dataset which would make comparisons between national registries possible, but variations such as age inclusion criteria and follow-up are becoming evident across the world. This variation should be avoided if we are to maximize the comparability of registry results and help different countries learn from each other's practice. The results reported in the Spanish RNFC, compared with those of other countries, highlight the differences between countries and detect areas of improvement, particularly surgical delay and early mobilization.

Meta-analysis in periprosthetic joint infection: a global bibliometric analysis

Background

Periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) is the most serious complication of joint replacement surgery. Further comorbidities include bedsore, deep vein thrombosis, reinfection, or even death. An increasing number of researchers are focusing on this challenging complication. The aim of the present study was to estimate global PJI research based on bibliometrics from meta-analysis studies.

Methods

A database search was performed in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Relevant studies were assessed using the bibliometric analysis.

Results

A total of 117 articles were included. The most relevant literature on PJI was found on Scopus. China made the highest contributions to global research, followed by the USA and the UK. The institution with the most contributions was the University of Bristol. The journal with the highest number of publications was The Journal of Arthroplasty, whereas the Journal of Clinical Medicine had the shortest acceptance time. Furthermore, the top three frequently used databases were Embase, MEDLINE, and Cochrane. The most frequent number of authors in meta-analysis studies was four. Most studies focused on the periprosthetic hip and knee. The alpha-defensin diagnostic test, preventive measures on antibiotics use, and risk factors of intra-articular steroid injections were the most popular topic in recent years.

Conclusion

Based on the results of the present study, we found that there was no single database that covered all relevant articles; the optimal method for bibliometric analysis is a combination of databases. The most popular research topics on PJI focused on alpha-defensin, antibiotic use, risk factors of intra-articular steroid injections, and the location of prosthetic hip and knee infection.

Spanish National Hip Fracture Registry (SNHFR): a description of its objectives, methodology and implementation

OBJECTIVE

To ascertain the current situation and clinical variability of the provision of care for Hip Fracture (HF) in Spain and the factors related to it by using a National Registry (NHFR) with high patient numbers and territorial representation NHFR, and to compare results on a national and international level and propose standards and criteria to improve healthcare quality.

DESIGN

Continuous registry for at least three years of a representative sample of patients admitted to Spanish hospitals due to HF using the Minimum Common Dataset - international Fragility Fracture Network (FFN) MCD, adapted for Spanish. STUDY SCOPE AND SUBJECTS: all patients over the age of 74 years who are hospitalized with a diagnosis of a fragility HF at the participating hospitals distributed throughout the Spanish territory. Initially 48 hospitals are included, and we expect to incorporate the highest number of sites possible.

RESULTS

It is expected to ascertain the current situation of provision of care for HF in Spain. Each hospital will be offered information regarding their results and their situation compared to the rest. The results from national hospitals will be compared to others included in the registry and to hospitals abroad, which use the same database. Variability will be studied, care standards will be established, and objectives will be proposed for the continuous improvement of the care process of this condition.

Usefulness of a national hip fracture registry to evaluate the profile of patients in whom antiosteoporotic treatment is prescribed following hospital discharge

This study was carried out to describe the profile of prescription of antiosteoporotic treatment at discharge after a hip fracture in the Spanish National Hip Fracture Registry. Prescription rates among hospitals ranged from 0 to 94% of patients discharged. The prescription rate was higher among patients with better cognitive and functional baseline status.

PURPOSE

National hip fracture registries are useful for assessing current care processes. The goals of this study were as follows: first, to know the rate of antiosteoporotic prescription at discharge among hip fracture patients in hospitals participating in the Spanish National Hip Fracture Registry (RNFC); second, to compare the differences between treated and non-treated patients; third, to analyze patients' characteristics associated with antiosteoporotic prescription at discharge; and fourth, to evaluate whether there were differences in the profile of patients discharged from hospitals with high and low prescription rates.

METHOD

Patients discharged after a fragility hip fracture in 2017 and participating in the RNFC were included. Demographic variables, cognitive and functional status, prefracture osteoporosis treatment, fracture type, anesthetic risk, hospital volume, and antiosteoporotic prescription at discharge were analyzed. Given that patients were clustered within hospitals, intraclass correlation was calculated and generalized estimating equations were fitted.

RESULTS

A total of 6701 patients from 54 hospitals were included. Antiosteoporotic prescription at discharge was prescribed to 36.5% (CI95% 35.8-37.2%), with a wide inter-hospital variability (range 0-94%). The intraclass correlation due of clustering of patients within hospitals was 47.9%. Antiosteoporotic prescription was more likely in patients who were younger, lived at home, previously treated for osteoporosis, had better baseline functional and cognitive status, lower anesthetic risk, and were discharged from high-volume hospitals, all with p < 0.001. The general profile of patients discharged from hospitals with high and low rate of prescription was similar.

CONCLUSIONS

There is a wide variability between hospitals regarding antiosteoporotic prescription after hip fracture. This is more likely to be initiated in patients with better clinical, functional, and mental status and in those discharged from hospitals with larger volumes of patients. These results offer insights regarding the selection of patients receiving secondary prevention and raises questions on who and how many should be treated.

Historical and political implications of haemophilia in the Spanish royal family

The political implications of haemophilia in the marriage of King Alfonso XIII of Spain and Princess Victoria Eugenie Battenberg of England have been reviewed in recent books on history. However, the fact that they had haemophilic sons also affected their personal relationship. In this article, we review the consequences haemophilia bore on their lives. We feel great compassion for families who suffer the illness, be it ordinary people or members of royalty; however, in this case, it can be said that when the disease affected a royal couple, the political consequences were great.

Obturator dislocation of total hip arthroplasty with disassembly of the prosthesis components and periprosthetic fracture in morbid obese patient

INTRODUCTION

Anterior dislocation is a rare complication of total hip arthroplasty (THA). There exist only three cases in the literature. None of them report disassembly of the prosthesis components. We present a morbidly obese woman who suffered an irreducible obturator dislocation of an infected total hip arthroplasty (THA), due to uncontrolled adduction during an early debridement surgery. Following unsuccessful closed reduction attempts, a Vancouver B2 periprosthetic fracture and disassembly of the prosthetic components were observed. Two-stage revision THA was necessary to resolve the infection and restore hip functionality. In obturator dislocation, the femoral head prosthetic can be trapped in the obturator foramen, and this may disassemble the prosthesis components during reduction maneuvers; theres also risk of periprosthetic fracture. This mandate an open reduction of the joint. Patient obesity could be a determining factor for this rare type of hip arthroplasty dislocation. Obturator dislocation is an extremely rare complication of the total hip arthroplasty, whose reductions should be handled with caution given the risks of periprosthetic fractures. In most cases, an open reduction of the joint is required.

CLINICAL IMPORTANCE

Our work is likely to be of great interest because it offers tips for the management of this rare complication based on our experience.

[Translated article] The influence of socioeconomic status and psychological factors on surgical outcomes of the carpometacarpal osteoarthritis of the thumb

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to investigate to what extent people with carpometacarpal thumb osteoarthritis that are socioeconomically disadvantaged and have psychological disorders report higher pain levels and worse patient-rated upper-extremity functionality after surgical treatment.

MATERIAL AND METHOD

A single centre, retrospective observational cohort study analysing 100 patients diagnosed with thumb carpometacarpal osteoarthritis between 2013 and 2019. Patients were divided into two groups (50/50), depending on whether they received surgical or conservative treatment. The socio-economic status (ESeC classification) and presence of psychological comorbidities were investigated. Functional outcomes were assessed using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Q-DASH questionnaire and Kapandji score. Current mental disorders were evaluated using STAI, PHQ-9 and PCS screening scales.

RESULTS

Measures of functional hand scores (Q-DASH) were higher and had considerably less pain in surgically treated participants, although thumb mobility (Kapandji) was more restricted. They were also associated with higher scores on psychological assessment scales. Sixty-four per cent of the patients came from lower socio-economic classes and suffered from poorer scores on the mental health screening questionnaires. Of the patients manage surgically, 54% were diagnosed of dysthymic disorder and showed significantly worse patient-rated upper-extremity function (Q-DASH questionnaire, median [IR]: 31.8 [20.5-54.6] than patients without psychological disorders (median [IR]: 13.6 [2.3-36.5]). No differences were found for patients with and without dysthymic disorder managed nonoperatively.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with higher rates of depression, anxiety and pain catastrophizing behaviour showed significantly worse outcomes after surgery for osteoarthritis of the first carpometacarpal joint. Lower socio-economic class significantly influences levels of depression and anxiety but did not affect functional outcome. Surgical treatment of carpometacarpal thumb osteoarthritis achieved better self-perceived hand function (QDASH, VAS, Kapandji) than conservative treatment.

1027 DEVELOPING A MINIMUM COMMON DATASET FOR HIP FRACTURE AUDIT

Introduction

National hip fracture audits share a common heritage in the work of Rikshöft and the Standardised Audit of Hip Fracture in Europe. However, as more countries develop audit programmes and these evolve to address local needs, divergence in the data they collect compromises their scope for learning from clinical, audit and quality improvement work in other nations.

Method

In 2021 we compared all ten established national hip fracture audits: England/Wales/Northern Ireland; Scotland; Australia/New Zealand; Ireland; Germany; the Netherlands; Sweden; Norway; Denmark; Spain. We tabulated all questions included in each, and cross-referenced them against the 32 questions of the minimum common dataset (MCD) defined by the global Fragility Fracture Network (FFN) in 2014. We identified those consistently used in most national audits, and additional fields that might need to form part of a revised MCD. Any MCD must meet the needs of both developed and developing countries. We presented these findings at the Asia-Pacific FFN meeting, and used an online questionnaire to capture feedback from different countries. A draft revision was presented at the Global FFN conference in September 2021, with feedback again used to finalise this revised MCD.

Results

We tabulated a total of 215 possible questions. Only 72 (34%) were used in &gt;1 national audit, and only 32 (15%) by more than half of audits. Adherence to the 2014 MCD was disappointing; all 32 fields were used by at least one audit, but 5/32 only by one audit. Only 21/32 (65%) were used in the majority, and only three (anaesthetic grade, operation and date/time of surgery) by all ten established audits.

Discussion

This revised MCD will help aspirant nations establish new audit programmes, facilitate the integration of novel analytic techniques and greater multinational collaboration, and serve as an internationally-accepted standard for monitoring and improving hip fracture services.

Time to surgery and 30-day mortality after hip fracture: An observational study of 29,695 patients reported to the Spanish National Hip Fracture Registry (SNHFR)

INTRODUCTION

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of time to surgery (TTS) on 30-day mortality in a cohort of patients from the Spanish National Hip Fracture Registry (SNHFR).

METHODS

Retrospective study of a prospective database of hip fracture patients ≥ 75 years old between 2017 and 2019. Exclusion criterion was nonsurgical treatment. Association between TTS and 30-day mortality was assessed with a univariate analysis. Effect size was calculated using the probability of superiority. Regression analysis was performed to analyze the relationship between TTS and 30-day vital status. The ROC curve was used to evaluate the discrimination of mortality based on TTS.

RESULTS

A total of 29,695 patients met the inclusion criteria. The median TTS was 53.8 h. Surgery within 48 h was performed in 51.8 % of cases. Patients with delay of surgery more than 2 days rather than within 2 days were more likely to present an ASA score above 2 (58.9 % vs. 41.1 %, p < 0.001), less likely to achieve postoperative mobilization within 24 h (63 % vs. 67.4 %, p < 0.001), more likely to develop pressure ulcers (10.7 % vs. 6.9 %, p < 0.001), and had longer length of stay (10.7 days vs. 6.9 days, p < 0.001). The overall 30-day mortality rate was 7.8 %. Median TTS was significantly higher in decedents (66 h) than in survivors (56.5 h). There were higher statistically significant differences in 30-day mortality between patients who underwent surgery after 2 days (7.5 %) and those who underwent surgery within 2 days (5.4 %). The 30-day mortality was 5.2 % in patients operated within 24 h and 9.2 % in patients operated more than 120 h. Probability of superiority value was 0.44. Area under the curve reached a value of 0.55.

CONCLUSIONS

The associations between TTS and 30-day mortality were weak. Hip fracture surgery performed within 2 days was significantly associated with remobilization on the day after the hip fracture, with fewer postoperative pressure ulcers and shorter hospital stays. Despite the weakness of the TTS and 30-day mortality association, there are benefits to consider if surgery is performed within 2 days. Our results suggest that patients should be fit for surgery as soon as possible.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

IV.

The influence of socioeconomic status and psychological factors on surgical outcomes of the carpometacarpal osteoarthritis of the thumb

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to investigate to what extent people with carpometacarpal thumb osteoarthritis that are socioeconomically disadvantaged and have psychological disorders report higher pain levels and worse patient-rated upper-extremity functionality after surgical treatment.

MATERIAL AND METHOD

A single center, retrospective observational cohort study analysing 100 patients diagnosed with thumb carpometacarpal osteoarthritis between 2013 and 2019. Patients were divided into two groups (50/50), depending on whether they received surgical or conservative treatment. The socio-economic status (ESeC classification) and presence of psychological comorbidities were investigated. Functional outcomes were assessed using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Q-DASH questionnaire and Kapandji score. Current mental disorders were evaluated using STAI, PHQ-9 and PCS screening scales.

RESULTS

Measures of functional hand scores (Q-DASH) were higher and had considerably less pain in surgically treated participants, although thumb mobility (Kapandji) was more restricted. They were also associated with higher scores on psychological assessment scales. Sixty-four per cent of the patients came from lower socio-economic classes and suffered from poorer scores on the mental health screening questionnaires. Of the patients manage surgically, 54% were diagnosed of dysthymic disorder and showed significantly worse patient-rated upper-extremity function (Q-DASH questionnaire, median [IR]:31,8 [20,5-54,6] than patients without psychological disorders (median [IR]: 13,6 [2,3-36,5]). No differences were found for patients with and without disthymic disorder managed nonoperatively.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with higher rates of depression, anxiety and pain catastrophizing behaviour showed significantly worse outcomes after surgery for osteoarthritis of the first carpometacarpal joint. Lower socio-economic class significantly influences levels of depression and anxiety but did not affect functional outcome. Surgical treatment of carpometacarpal thumb osteoarthritis achieved better self-perceived hand function (QDASH, VAS, Kapandji) than conservative treatment.