The combined effect of ADL impairment and delay in time from fracture to surgery on 12-month mortality: an observational study in orthogeriatric patients.

BACKGROUND

Delayed surgery (ie, >48 hours from arrival in hospital) and pre-fracture disability are thought to be long-term risk factors for mortality in patients with hip fracture (HF). However, the combined effect on mortality of these two conditions has not been satisfactorily assessed in previous studies.

OBJECTIVE

To assess the combined effect of pre-fracture disability and delayed surgery on 12-month mortality in a population of elderly patients after HF surgical treatment.

DESIGN

Retrospective cohort study with 12-month follow-up.

SETTING

An orthogeriatric unit (OGU) in a university hospital in Italy.

METHODS

All patients (n = 390) admitted to an OGU from March 2007 to December 2010 who underwent proximal HF surgery and who were not transferred to other hospitals were considered for the analyses. Pre-fracture disability was defined as having an impairment in more than one activity of daily living (ADL). The 12-month mortality was assessed by a Kaplan-Meyer analysis and by a Cox proportional hazards regression models adjusting for relevant potential confounders.

RESULTS

After adjusting for potential confounders, patients with both delayed surgery and pre-fracture disability had a significantly higher 12-month mortality (hazard ratio [HR] = 5.80; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.11-15.92) than patients with neither delayed surgery nor disability (reference group). Patients with disability but not delayed surgery had a nearly 4-fold increased mortality risk (HR, 3.98; 95% CI 1.41-11.27) than patients in the reference group.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with both pre-fracture disability and delayed HF surgical treatment had a nearly six-fold increased 12-month mortality risk than did patients with neither disability nor delayed surgery.