Impact of Stroke History on the Risk of Recurrent Hip Fracture or Major Osteoporotic Fractures among Patients with Incident Hip Fracture: A Nationwide Cohort Study.

Considerable uncertainty prevails regarding risk factors for recurrent fracture among older patients with hip fracture. We aimed to investigate the relationship between prefracture stroke history, baseline mobility, and the risk of recurrent hip fracture. This cohort study was based on the Danish Multidisciplinary Hip Fracture Registry, 2011-2018 (n = 48,230). We estimated cumulative incidence (competing risk of death) of recurrent hip fracture and major osteoporotic fractures within 1 and 2 years comparing patients with/without prefracture stroke history. Analyses were performed overall and stratified on baseline mobility status (good mobility: Cumulated Ambulation Score ≥ 5 versus poor mobility: Cumulated Ambulation Score < 5). Using Cox regression, adjusted cause-specific hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were obtained. The 1-year cumulative incidence was 4.6% (95% CI: 3.9-5.4) among patients with stroke history and 4.3% (95% CI: 4.1-4.5) among patients without stroke history. For patients with good mobility, the cumulative incidence of recurrent hip fracture was 5.8% (95% CI: 4.3-7.5) versus 3.7% (95% CI: 3.4-4.0) for patients with versus without stroke history. Corresponding numbers for patients with poor mobility were 4.4% (95% CI: 3.6-5.5) and 5.0% (95% CI: 4.7-5.3). Stroke history was associated with an adjusted HR of 1.55 (95% CI: 1.15-2.10) for recurrent fracture among patients with good mobility. In contrast, no association was observed among patients with poor mobility (adjusted HR 0.88 [95% CI: 0.70-1.10]). The associations were attenuated after 2 years of follow-up and for major osteoporotic fractures. In conclusion, stroke history was associated with slightly higher risk of recurrent fracture among patients with first-time hip fracture in the overall analysis, although the CI included a null result. The association was modified by baseline mobility: Patients with stroke history and good mobility had a markedly higher risk, whereas patients with stroke and poor mobility did not. © 2022 The Authors. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR).

The Interaction Effect Between Previous Stroke and Hip Fracture on Postoperative Mortality: A Nationwide Cohort Study.

Purpose: It remains uncertain how a history of stroke impacts the prognosis for patients with hip fracture. This study aimed to evaluate mortality following hip fracture surgery by comparing patients with and without a history of stroke. Patients and Methods: All patients aged 65 years or above in Denmark receiving hip fracture surgery between 2010 and 2018. For every patient, 10 individuals from the general population without hip fracture were sampled. Comparators had a similar stroke history, age, and sex on the date of hip fracture surgery (index date). We established four cohorts: hip fracture patients with/without stroke and non-hip fracture patients with/without stroke. Outcomes were all-cause mortality at 0-30 days, 31-365 days and 1 to 5 years. Direct standardized mortality rates (MR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were computed. We calculated the interaction contrast to estimate excess absolute mortality among patients with both hip fracture and stroke. Through a Cox proportional hazards model, we estimated the hazard ratio (HR) and the attributable proportion as a measure of excess relative mortality attributable to interaction. Results: Of the hip fracture patients, 8433 had a stroke history and 44,997 did not. Of the non-hip fracture patients, 84,330 had a stroke history and 449,962 did not. Corresponding 30-day MRs/100 person years were 148.4 (95% CI: 138.8-158.7), 124.3 (95% CI: 120.7-128.1), 14.3 (95% CI: 13.4-15.2) and 8.4 (95% CI: 8.1-8.7). The interaction contrast was 18.2 (95% CI: 7.5-28.8), and the attributable proportion was 9.0% (95% CI: 2.9-15.1). No interaction was present beyond 30 days. Conclusion: We observed excess short-term mortality in patients with stroke and hip fracture, but the effect disappeared at later follow-up periods. Clinicians are encouraged to pay rigorous attention to early complications among hip fracture patients with stroke, as this may serve as a way to reduce mortality.

Development and validation of a model for predicting mortality in patients with hip fracture.

OBJECTIVE: to develop a user-friendly prediction tool of 1-year mortality for patients with hip fracture, in order to guide clinicians and patients on appropriate targeted preventive measures. DESIGN: population-based cohort study from 2011 to 2017 using nationwide data from the Danish Hip Fracture Registry. SUBJECTS: a total of 28,791 patients age 65 and above undergoing surgery for a first-time hip fracture. METHODS: patient-related prognostic factors at the time of admission were assessed as potential predictors: Nursing home residency, comorbidity (Charlson Comorbidity Index [CCI] Score), frailty (Hospital Frailty Risk Score), basic mobility (Cumulated Ambulation Score), atrial fibrillation, fracture type, body mass index (BMI), age and sex. Association with 1-year mortality examined by determining the cumulative incidence, applying univariable logistic regression and assessing discrimination (area under the receiver operating characteristics curve [AUROC]). The final model (logistic regression) was utilised on a development cohort (70% of patients). Discrimination and calibration were assessed on the validation cohort (remaining 30% of patients). RESULTS: all predictors showed an association with 1-year mortality, but discrimination was moderate. The final model included nursing home residency, CCI Score, Cumulated Ambulation Score, BMI and age. It had an acceptable discrimination (AUROC 0.74) and calibration, and predicted 1-year mortality risk spanning from 5 to 91% depending on the combination of predictors in the individual patient. CONCLUSIONS: using information obtainable at the time of admission, 1-year mortality among patients with hip fracture can be predicted. We present a user-friendly chart for daily clinical practice and provide new insight regarding the interplay between prognostic factors.

Potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs): frequency and extent of GP-related variation in PIMs: a register-based cohort study.

OBJECTIVES: Potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) pose an increasing challenge in the ageing population. We aimed to assess the extent of PIMs and the prescriber-related variation in PIM prevalence. DESIGN: Nationwide register-based cohort study. SETTING: General practice. PARTICIPANTS: The 4.2 million adults listed with general practitioner (GP) clinics in Denmark (n=1906) in 2016. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: We estimated the patients' time with PIMs by using 29 register-operationalised STOPP criteria linking GP clinics and redeemed prescriptions. For each criterion and each GP clinic, we calculated ratios between the observed PIM time and that predicted by multivariate Poisson regressions on the patients. The observed variation was measured as the 90th/10th percentile ratios of these ratios. The extent of expectable random variation was assessed as the 90th/10th percentile ratios in randomly sampled GP populations (ie, the sampled variation). The GP-related excess variation was calculated as the ratio between the observed variation and sampled variation. The linear correlation between the observed/expected ratio for each of the criteria and the observed/expected ratio of total PIM time (for each clinic) was measured by Pearson's rho. RESULTS: Overall, 294 542 individuals were exposed to 1 44 117 years of PIMs. The two most prevalent PIMs were long-term use (>3 months) of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (51 074 years of PIMs) or benzodiazepines (48 723 years of PIMs). These two criteria showed considerable excess variation of 2.33 and 3.05, respectively; for total PIMs, this figure was 1.65. For more than half of the criteria, we observed a positive correlation between the specific PIM and the sum of remaining PIMs. CONCLUSIONS: This study documents considerable variations in the prescribing practice of GPs for certain PIMs. These findings highlight a need for exploring the causal explanations for such variations, which could be markers of suboptimal GP-prescribing strategies.

Association of CHA2 DS2 -VASc Score with Stroke, Thromboembolism, and Death in Hip Fracture Patients.

OBJECTIVES: Patients undergoing hip fracture surgery have a 10 times increased risk of stroke compared with the general population. We aimed to evaluate the association between the CHA2 DS2 -VASc (congestive heart failure, hypertension, age ≥75 years, diabetes, previous stroke/TIA [transient ischemic attack]/systemic embolism (2 points), vascular disease, age 65-74 years, and female sex) score and the risk of stroke, thromboembolism, and all-cause mortality in patients with hip fracture with or without atrial fibrillation (AF). DESIGN: Nationwide prospective cohort study. SETTING: Danish hospitals. PARTICIPANTS: Subjects were all incident hip fracture patients in Denmark age 65 years and older with surgical repair procedures between 2004 and 2016 (n = 78,096). Participants were identified using the Danish Multidisciplinary Hip Fracture Registry. MEASUREMENTS: We calculated incidence rates, cumulative incidences, and hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) by CHA2 DS2 -VASc score, stratified on AF history. RESULTS: The cumulative incidence of ischemic stroke 1 year after hip fracture increased with ascending CHA2 DS2 -VASc score, and it was 1.9% for patients with a score of 1 and 8.6% for patients with a score above 5 in the AF group. Corresponding incidences in the non-AF group were 1.6% and 7.6%. Compared with a CHA2 DS2 -VASc score of 1, adjusted HRs were 5.53 (95% CI = 1.37-22.24) among AF patients and 4.91 (95% CI = 3.40-7.10) among non-AF patients with a score above 5. A dose-response-like association was observed for all cardiovascular outcomes. All-cause mortality risks and HRs were substantially higher for all CHA2 DS2 -VASc scores above 1 in both the AF group and the non-AF group. CONCLUSION: Among patients with hip fracture, a higher CHA2 DS2 -VASc score was associated with increased risk of stroke, thromboembolism, and death. This finding applied both to patients with and without AF. Patients with high CHA2 DS2 -VASc scores had almost similar absolute risks for cardiovascular outcomes, irrespective of AF. J Am Geriatr Soc 68:1698-1705, 2020.

Statins and Risk of Intracerebral Hemorrhage in Individuals With a History of Stroke.

Background and Purpose- It has been suggested that statins increase the risk of intracerebral hemorrhage in individuals with a history of stroke, which has led to a precautionary principle of avoiding statins in patients with prior intracerebral hemorrhage. However, such prescribing reticence may be unfounded and potentially harmful when considering the well-established benefits of statins. This study is so far the largest to explore the statin-associated risk of intracerebral hemorrhage in individuals with prior stroke. Methods- We conducted a population-based, propensity score-matched cohort study using information from Danish national registers. We included all individuals initiating statin treatment after a first-time stroke diagnosis (intracerebral hemorrhage, N=2728 or ischemic stroke, N=52 964) during 2002 to 2016. For up to 10 years of follow-up, they were compared with a 1:5 propensity score-matched group of statin nonusers with the same type of first-time stroke. The difference between groups was measured by adjusted hazard ratios for intracerebral hemorrhage calculated by type of first-time stroke as a function of time since statin initiation. Results- Within the study period, 118 new intracerebral hemorrhages occurred among statin users with prior intracerebral hemorrhage and 319 new intracerebral hemorrhages in users with prior ischemic stroke. The risk of intracerebral hemorrhage was similar for statin users and nonusers when evaluated among those with prior intracerebral hemorrhage, and it was reduced by half in those with prior ischemic stroke. These findings were consistent over time since statin initiation and could not be explained by concomitant initiation of other medications, by dilution of treatment effect (due to changes in exposure status over time), or by healthy initiator bias. Conclusions- This large study found no evidence that statins increase the risk of intracerebral hemorrhage in individuals with prior stroke; perhaps the risk is even lower in the subgroup of individuals with prior ischemic stroke.

Statins and Risk of Intracerebral Haemorrhage in a Stroke-Free Population: A Nationwide Danish Propensity Score Matched Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: Statins may increase the risk of intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) in individuals with previous stroke. It remains unclear whether this applies to individuals with no history of stroke. This study is the first to explore the statin-associated risk of ICH in stroke-free individuals while considering the timing of statin initiation. METHODS: We conducted a population-based, propensity score matched cohort study using information from five Danish national registers. We included all stroke-free individuals initiating statins in 2004-2013 and a propensity score matched group of non-users. Adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) for ICH risk among statin users compared to non-users were calculated as a function of time since statin initiation. FINDINGS: 519,894 stroke-free individuals initiating statins and their 1:5 matched stroke-free reference subjects were included and followed for up to ten years. During this period, 1409 ICHs occurred in statin users. Statin users had an overall aHR of 0.85 (95% confidence interval: 0.80-0.90) compared to non-users, but this risk was modified by time since statin initiation. Statin users and non-users had similar ICH risk during the first six months after statin initiation. Hereafter, statin users had a 22-35% lower risk throughout the study period. INTERPRETATION: Statin users had lower ICH risk than non-users from six months after statin initiation. This finding could not be explained by healthy initiator bias or differences between users and non-users in terms of sociodemographic characteristics, comorbidity, or parallel treatment regimens. Our study suggests that statin use in stroke-free populations is associated with reduced ICH risk. FUNDING: The Novo Nordisk Foundation.

Avoidable readmissions seem to be reduced by early follow-up visits for geriatric patients discharged from hospital.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to look specifically at patients readmitted in our previously published study. We wanted to assess the percentage of avoidable readmissions among patients receiving an early geriatric follow-up visit compared to a control group receiving usual care. METHOD: The original population was geriatric patients primarily admitted to hospital with one of nine medical diagnoses and included in a quasi randomized controlled trial. They received either an early geriatric follow-up visit or usual care after hospital discharge. Only patients with an unplanned readmission were included in this subgroup analysis. Medical records of the readmitted patients were assessed by two reviewers. Each readmission was classified as either avoidable or unavoidable. An avoidable readmission was defined as being clinically related to index admissions. RESULTS: Between June 2014 and November 2015, 2076 patients were included in the original study. Of these, 216 patients were readmitted. Almost half of avoidable readmissions happened during the first week after hospital discharge. Thirty-four (41%) of 83 readmissions in the intervention group were assessed as avoidable compared to 72 (54%) of 133 readmissions in the control group (p = 0.06). CONCLUSION: An early follow-up visit after hospital discharge seems to reduce avoidable readmissions among geriatric patients.