Mortality-Related Risk Factors in Geriatric Patients with Hip Fracture.

BACKGROUND: Mortality rates after hip fractures increase by up to 30% with age. This study investigated the contribution of various parameters to prognosis and mortality. METHODS: Our study prospectively examined patients with hip fracture aged 65 years and over who applied to the Atatürk University Medical Faculty Hospital Orthopedics Service in 2020-2021. RESULTS: The 120 patients included in the study had a mean age of 79.71±7.27 years, and 51.7% were female. Twenty patients (16.7%) died within the first 30 days after a hip fracture. They had a significantly lower median Lawton-Brody instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) scale score (p=0.045) and a higher rate of malnutrition according to the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) score (p=0.016). Additionally, these patients with 30-day mortality had a significantly lower rate of surgical treatment (p=0.027) and a longer time from injury to surgery (p=0.014). The time to surgery was a significant independent risk factor for 30-day mortality, with each 1-hour delay increasing the odds of mortality by 1.066 (odds ratio [OR]=1.066; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.001-1.013; p=0.013). In addition, the presence of malnutrition was another independent risk factor that increased the odds of mortality by 4.166 times (OR=4.166; 95% CI, 1.285-13.427; p=0.017). CONCLUSION: We recommend placing more importance on supportive treatment in patients presenting with hip fractures, especially in those with malnutrition; performing surgical intervention as early as possible; and more closely following up with patients with the aforementioned risk factors.

The effect of insulin resistance on the heart rate recovery in healthy individuals with a low-to-moderate cardiovascular disease risk profile.

The association between insulin resistance (IR) and heart rate recovery index (HRRI) has been reported previously, but the cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk profile of the subjects was unclear in these studies. Therefore, we evaluated the association between IR and HRRI in apparently healthy individuals without metabolic syndrome who had a low-to-moderate CVD risk profile. A total of 182 eligible subjects were retrospectively included in the study. The subjects were divided into two groups according to the homeostasis model assessment of IR (HOMA-IR) value. HOMA-IR ≥2.5 was defined as IR (+) group (92 subjects), and <2.5 as IR (-) group (88 subjects). HRRI-2 was found by subtracting the heart rate at the second minute in the post-exercise recovery period from the maximum heart rate. Abnormal HRRI was defined as HRRI-2 that is ≤42 beats. The mean age of the patients was 41.91 ± 8.64 and 49.4% of them were female. Abnormal HRRI rates were significantly higher in the IR (+) group (37.2% vs 18.2%; p = 0.004). A negative correlation was detected between HRRI-2 and HOMA-IR (r = -0.416; p < 0.001). HOMA-IR (Odds Ratio (OR) = 1.57; confidence interval (CI) = 1.10-2.23; p = 0.013) and maximum heart rate during exercise (OR = 0.95; CI = 0.91-0.99; p = 0.013) as independent variables of abnormal HRRI. The HOMA-IR value of 2.82 was identified as an effective cutoff point for the prediction of abnormal HRRI (area under the curve: 0.658; CI: 0.570-0.746; p = 0.001). In this study, it was shown that IR without metabolic syndrome reduces HRRI in healthy individuals with a low-to-moderate CVD risk profile.

Efficiency of instant messaging applications in coordination of emergency calls for combat injuries: A pilot study.

BACKGROUND: Coordination of an emergency response team is an important determinant of prompt treatment for combat injuries in hospitals. The authors hypothesized that instant messaging applications for smartphones could be appropriate tools for notifying emergency response team members. The objective of this study was to investigate the efficiency of a commercial instant messaging application (WhatsApp, Mountain View, CA) as a communication tool for the emergency team in a level-I trauma center. METHODS: We retrospectively evaluated the messages in the instant messaging application group that was formed to coordinate responses to patients who suffered from combat injuries and who were transported to our hospital via helicopter during an 8-week period. We evaluated the response times, response time periods during or outside of work hours, and the differences in the response times of doctors, nurses, and technicians among the members of the emergency team to the team leader's initial message about the patients. RESULTS: A total of 510 emergency call messages pertaining to 17 combat injury emergency cases were logged. The median time of emergency response was 4.1 minutes, 6 minutes, and 5.3 minutes for doctors, nurses, and the other team members, respectively. The differences in these response times between the groups were statistically significant (p=0.03), with subgroup analyses revealing significant differences between doctors and nurses (p=0.038). However, no statistically significant differences were observed between the doctors and the technicians (p=0.19) or the nurses and the technicians (p=1.0). From the team leader's perspective, using this application reduced the workload and the time loss, and also encouraged the team. CONCLUSION: Instant messaging applications for smartphones can be efficient, easy-to-operate, and time-saving communication tools in the transfer of medical information and the coordination of emergency response team members in hospitals.

Surgically Confirmed Intra- and Extratesticular Hematoma Clinically Mimicing Epididymo-Orchitis and Radiologically Mimicing Traumatic Torsion.

BACKGROUND: Scrotal blunt trauma may result in injuries, such as testicular rupture, dislocation, torsion, hematoma, spermatic cord injury or contusion, and epididymal, scrotal, and urethral injuries. Ultrasonography (US) has a crucial role in the evaluation of those kinds of pathologies. Early diagnosis of testicular rupture may lead to the salvaging of the testicle by prompt surgical exploration within 72 h. CASE REPORT: A 21-year-old male with right scrotal swelling and pain complaints was admitted to another hospital one month ago. Epididymo-orchitis was diagnosed and the patient was given medical treatment. The patient was admitted to our emergency service with ongoing complaints. The patient stated that the pain and swelling suddenly developed after prolonged marching. On US, a large hematoma was detected between the leaves of the tunica vaginalis, and rupture from the lower pole was diagnosed. On color Doppler US, no vascularity was observed in the heterogeneous testicular parenchyma. Traumatic torsion was primarily suggested. Intraoperatively, an extratesticular hematoma, hematocele, and rupture were confirmed but torsion was not found. Because the hematoma entirely replaced the normal parenchyma, orchiectomy was performed. CONCLUSIONS: Testicular rupture may occur even after moderate sportive action such as prolonged marching. If any delay occurs in diagnosis and/or operation, the coagulum may replace the entire parenchyma. We think that US and clinical findings may sometimes mislead the physicians and cause misdiagnoses, such as inflammation or torsion. In this paper, we present a complex delayed diagnosed example case of testicular rupture clinically mimicing epididymo-orchitis and radiologically mimicing traumatic testicular torsion.