The correlates of post-surgical haematoma in older adults with proximal femoral fractures.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the incidence of haematoma, and clinical correlates among orthogeriatric patients. AIMS: This study aims to describe the incidence of haematoma after surgical repair of hip fracture and to identify the clinical correlates of haematoma among orthogeriatric patients. METHODS: Two orthopaedic surgeons and a dedicated operator using ultrasound technique, each other in blindness, evaluated 154 orthogeriatric patients during their hospital stay. All patients received a comprehensive geriatric assessment. We investigated the concordance between clinical diagnosis and ultrasound detection of haematoma, and then we explored the clinical correlates of the onset of post-surgical haematoma. RESULTS: Blood effusion at the surgical site was detected in 77 (50%) patients using ultrasound technique; orthopaedic surgeons reached a clinical agreement about post-surgical haematoma in 18 (23%) patients. The sensitivity of clinical evaluation was 0.66, and the specificity was 0.70. Independent of age, clinical, pharmacological, and surgical confounders, proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) were associated with post-surgical haematoma (OR 2.28; 95% CI 1.15-4.49). A tendency towards association was observed between selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and post-surgical haematoma (OR 2.10; 95% CI 0.97-4.54), CONCLUSIONS: Half of older patients undergoing surgical repair of proximal femoral fracture develop a post-surgical haematoma. Clinical assessment, even if made by senior orthopaedic surgeons, underestimates the actual occurrence of post-surgical haematoma compared to ultrasound detection. Ultrasound technique may help to detect haematoma larger than 15 mm better than clinical assessment. PPIs's use is a risk factor for post-surgical haematoma independent of several medical and surgical confounders.

Surgical delay is a risk factor of delirium in hip fracture patients with mild-moderate cognitive impairment.

AIM: To investigate the relationship between onset of delirium and time to surgery in hip fracture (HF) patients with a different degree of cognitive impairment. METHODS: Retrospective analysis of a prospective database of 939 older adults, aged ≥ 75 years admitted with a fragility HF. Subjects underwent a Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment on admission, evaluating health status, prefracture functional status in basic and instrumental activities of daily living, and walking ability. According to the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire score, patients were stratified into three categories: cognitively healthy (0-2 errors), mildly to moderately impaired (3-7 errors) and severely impaired (8-10 errors). Time to surgery (from admission) was expressed as days. The occurrence of delirium was ascertained daily by Confusion Assessment Method. RESULTS: Two hundred ninety-two (31.1%) patients experienced delirium during in-hospital stay. They were older, with a higher degree of comorbidity and functional impairment compared to patients without delirium. In multivariate analysis, surgical delay resulted a significant independent risk factor for delirium (HR 1.11, 95% CI 1.01-1.24), along with age, prefracture functional disability and cognitive impairment. When the analysis was performed accounting for the cognitive categories, surgical delay demonstrated to increase the risk of delirium only in the subcategory of mildly to moderately impaired patients, while no significant effect was demonstrated in patients cognitively healthy or severely impaired. CONCLUSIONS: The study supports the concept that older adults with HF should undergo surgery quickly. Patients with mild-to-moderate cognitive impairment should be primarily considered as the best target for interventions aiming to reduce time to surgery.

Orthogeriatric co-management - managing frailty as well as fragility.

A high proportion of patients with fragility fracture, mainly hip fracture, have a variable degree of comorbidity and show some degree of dependence in basic or more complex activities of daily living. Evaluating these patents following the geriatric concept of frailty, about one third of hip fracture patients may be categorised as frail with high risk of poor outcomes and prolonged length of stay, one third as not frail, and about one third with an intermediate condition. Due to the high vulnerability, combined with the hip fracture event and surgical repair procedures, a multidisciplinary approach that includes geriatric competencies becomes essential to improve short and long-term outcomes after hip fracture. A key element of an effective process of care is a true co-managed approach that applies quality standards and provides a fast-track pathway of care, minimises the time the patient spends in bed, and reduces postoperative complications by means of standardised procedures. The occurrence of a fragility fracture is the strongest risk factor for a subsequent fracture. Moreover, frail subjects have a further risk of fracture due to high risk of falls - related to loss of muscle mass, multiple illnesses, impaired balance and weakness. Thus, effective secondary prevention strategies are essential to reduce morbidity and mortality after hip fracture, and they are currently a standard task of orthogeriatric care. Fracture liaison services (FLS) are probably the most efficient way of addressing secondary prevention including the assessment of both bone health and falls risk. Therefore, the optimal management of frail patients with fragility fracture includes both orthogeriatric care and FLS, which are complementary to each other. Orthogeriatric collaboration is also powerful in influencing healthcare policy. British experience as well as that in Ireland, Australia and New Zealand, have shown that when two widely disparate specialisms say the same thing, they may achieve a fundamental shift in attitudes and behaviour of both managers and clinicians. Furthermore, a continuous real-time audit, at national level, is a powerful driver for change and better standards of care.