Top comorbidities in osteoporotic fracture patients in a northeast population in China.

BACKGROUND

Osteoporotic fractures frequently occur in conjunction with various diseases, and the comorbidity of fractures is a significant contributor to their high disability and mortality rates. This study aimed to examine the pattern of comorbidity in fracture patients and non-fracture individuals.

METHODS

Using data from community- and hospital-based populations in Jilin, China, we identified osteoporotic fracture patients over 40 years of age. We matched each fracture patient with two non-fracture individuals based on age (± 3 years) and sex. Major comorbidities including hypertension, type 2 diabetes, hyperlipidemia, obesity, coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke, hyperthyroidism, hyperparathyroidism, osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, respiratory diseases, gastrointestinal diseases, and breast cancer, were ascrertained from patients' laboratory test results and self-reported data.

RESULTS

We identified 51 hospital-based fracture patients, 181 community-based fracture patients and 362 matched non-fracture individuals. The mean age for both overall fracture patients and non-fracture individuals was 67.8 years. Females accounted for 72.8% of overall fracture patients and 71.8% of non-fracture individuals. The most common comorbidity was hypertension for overall fracture patients (45.3%), hospital-based fracture patients (39.2%), and non-fracture individuals (56.4%), whereas hyperlipidemia was the most frequent condition for community-based fracture patients (63.6%). The top binary comorbidity combination pattern for community-based fracture patients (30.4%) and non-fracture individuals (29.6%) was hyperlipidemia & hypertension, while for hospital-based (15.7%) and overall (15.1%) fracture patients it was hypertension & type 2 diabetes. The average degree of comorbidity network for overall fracture patients (7.0) was higher than that for non-fracture individuals (5.4).

CONCLUSIONS

The most common comorbidities were hyperlipidemia and hypertension among fracture patients. As compared to non-fracture individuals, fracture patients exhibited a more complex comorbidity network. These findings help us better target the management of comorbidities in patients with osteoporotic fractures and reduce the burden associated with fractures.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Not applicable.