Risks factors for significant injury after geriatric falls.

Elderly falls are a healthcare epidemic. We aimed to identify risk factors of serious falls by linking data on functional status from the Global Longitudinal Study of Osteoporosis in Women (GLOW) and our institutional trauma registry. 124 of 5,091 local women enrolled in GLOW were evaluated by our trauma team for injuries related to a fall during the study period. Median injury severity score was 9. The most common injuries were intertrochanteric femur fracture (n = 25, 9.8%) and skin contusion/hematoma to face (n = 12, 4.7%). Injured women were older than the uninjured cohort (median 80 versus 68 years), more likely to have cardiovascular disease and osteoarthritis, and less likely to have high cholesterol. Prospectively collected Short Form 36 (SF-36) baseline activity status revealed greater limitation in all assessed activities in women evaluated for fall-related injuries in our trauma center. In multivariable analysis, age (per 10 year increase) and two or more self-reported falls in the baseline survey were the strongest predictors of falling (both HR 2.4, p <0.0001 and p<0.001 respectively), followed by history of osteoarthritis (HR 1.6, p= 0.01). Functional status was no longer associated with risk of fall when adjusting for these factors. Functional status appears to be a surrogate marker for frailty. With the aging of the US population and long lifespan of American women, this finding has important implications for both fall prevention strategies and research intended to better understand why aging women fall as burdensome validated metrics may not be the best indicators of fall risk.

Predicting survival after acute civilian penetrating brain injuries: The SPIN score.

OBJECTIVE: To identify predictors associated with survival in civilian penetrating traumatic brain injury (pTBI) utilizing a contemporary, large, diverse 2-center cohort, and to develop a parsimonious survival prediction score for pTBI. METHODS: Our cohort comprised 413 pTBI patients retrospectively identified from the local trauma registries at 2 US level 1 trauma centers, of which one was predominantly urban and the other predominantly rural. Predictors of in-hospital and 6-month survival identified in univariate and multivariable logistic regression were used to develop the simple Surviving Penetrating Injury to the Brain (SPIN) score. RESULTS: The mean age was 33 ± 16 years and patients were predominantly male (87%). Survival at hospital discharge as well as 6 months post pTBI was 42.4%. Higher motor Glasgow Coma Scale subscore, pupillary reactivity, lack of self-inflicted injury, transfer from other hospital, female sex, lower Injury Severity Score, and lower international normalized ratio were independently associated with survival (all p < 0.001; model area under the curve 0.962). Important radiologic factors associated with survival were also identified but their addition to the full multivariable would have resulted in model overfitting without much gain in the area under the curve. CONCLUSIONS: The SPIN score, a logistic regression-based clinical risk stratification scale estimating survival after pTBI, was developed in this large, diverse 2-center cohort. While this preliminary clinical survival prediction tool does not include radiologic factors, it may support clinical decision-making after civilian pTBI if external validation confirms the probability estimates.

Comparison of Four Views to Single-view Ultrasound Protocols to Identify Clinically Significant Pneumothorax.

OBJECTIVE: Ultrasound (US) has been shown to be effective at identifying a pneumothorax (PTX); however, the additional value of adding multiple views has not been studied. Single- and four-view protocols have both been described in the literature. The objective of this study was to compare the diagnostic accuracy of single-view versus four-view lung US to detect clinically significant PTX in trauma patients. METHODS: This was a randomized, prospective trial on trauma patients. Adult patients with acute traumatic injury undergoing computed tomography (CT) scan of the chest were eligible for enrollment. Patients were randomized to a single view or four views of each hemithorax prior to any imaging. USs were performed and interpreted by credentialed physicians using a 7.5-Mhz linear array transducer on a portable US machine with digital clips recorded for later review. Attending radiologist interpretation of the chest CT was reviewed for presence or absence of PTX with descriptions of small foci of air or minimal PTX categorized as clinically insignificant. RESULTS: A total of 260 patients were enrolled over a 2-year period. A total of 139 patients received a single view of each chest wall and 121 patients received four views. There were a total of 49 patients that had a PTX (19%), and 29 of these were clinically significant (11%). In diagnosis of any PTX, both single-view and four-view techniques showed poor sensitivity (54.2 and 68%) but high specificity (99 and 98%). For clinically significant PTX, single-view US demonstrated a sensitivity of 93% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 64.1% to 99.6%) and a specificity of 99.2% (95% CI = 95.5% to 99.9%), with sensitivity of 93.3% (95% CI = 66% to 99.7%) and specificity of 98% (95% CI = 92.1% to 99.7%) for four views. CONCLUSIONS: Single-view and four-view chest wall USs demonstrate comparable sensitivity and specificity for PTX. The additional time to obtain four views should be weighed against the absence of additional diagnostic yield over a single view when using US to identify a clinically significant PTX.

Improving patient notification of solid abdominal viscera incidental findings with a standardized protocol.

BACKGROUND: The increasing use of computed tomography (CT) scans in the evaluation of trauma patients has led to increased detection of incidental radiologic findings. Incidental findings (IFs) of the abdominal viscera are among the most commonly discovered lesions and can carry a risk of malignancy. Despite this, patient notification regarding these findings is often inadequate. METHODS: We identified patients who underwent abdominopelvic CTs as part of their trauma evaluation during a recent 1-year period (9/2011-8/2012). Patients with IFs of the kidneys, liver, adrenal glands, pancreas and/or ovaries had their charts reviewed for documentation of the lesion in their discharge paperwork or follow-up. A quality improvement project was initiated where patients with abdominal IFs were verbally informed of the finding, it was noted on their discharge summary and/or were referred to specialists for evaluation. Nine months after the implementation of the IF protocol, a second chart review was performed to determine if the rate of patient notification improved. RESULTS: Of 1,117 trauma patients undergoing abdominopelvic CT scans during the 21 month study period, 239 patients (21.4%) had 292 incidental abdominal findings. Renal lesions were the most common (146 patients, 13% of all patients) followed by hepatic (95/8.4%) and adrenal (38/3.4%) lesions. Pancreatic (10/0.9%) and ovarian lesions (3/0.3%) were uncommon. Post-IF protocol implementation patient notification regarding IFs improved by over 80% (32.4% vs. 17.7% pre-protocol, p = 0.02). CONCLUSION: IFs of the solid abdominal organs are common in trauma patients undergoing abdominopelvic CT scan. Patient notification regarding these lesions is often inadequate. A systematic approach to the documentation and evaluation of incidental radiologic findings can significantly improve the rate of patient notification.

Quadrimodal distribution of death after trauma suggests that critical injury is a potentially terminal disease.

BACKGROUND: Patterns of death after trauma are changing due to advances in critical care. We examined mortality in critically injured patients who survived index hospitalization. METHODS: Retrospective analysis of adults admitted to a Level-1 trauma center (1/1/2000-12/31/2010) with critical injury was conducted comparing patient characteristics, injury, and resource utilization between those who died during follow-up and survivors. RESULTS: Of 1,695 critically injured patients, 1,135 (67.0%) were discharged alive. As of 5/1/2012, 977/1,135 (86.0%) remained alive; 75/158 (47.5%) patients who died during follow-up, died in the first year. Patients who died had longer hospital stays (24 vs. 17 days) and ICU LOS (17 vs. 8 days), were more likely to undergo tracheostomies (36% vs. 16%) and gastrostomies (39% vs. 16%) and to be discharged to rehabilitation (76% vs. 63%) or skilled nursing (13% vs. 5.8%) facilities than survivors. In multivariable models, male sex, older age, and longer ICU LOS predicted mortality. Patients with ICU LOS >16 days had 1.66 odds of 1-year mortality vs. those with shorter ICU stays. CONCLUSIONS: ICU LOS during index hospitalization is associated with post-discharge mortality. Patients with prolonged ICU stays after surviving critical injury may benefit from detailed discussions about goals of care after discharge.

Not just full of hot air: hyperbaric oxygen therapy increases survival in cases of necrotizing soft tissue infections.

BACKGROUND: The utility of hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) in the treatment of necrotizing soft tissue infections (NSTIs) has not been proved. Previous studies have been subject to substantial selection bias because HBOT is not available universally at all medical centers, and there is often considerable delay associated with its initiation. We examined the utility of HBOT for the treatment of NSTI in the modern era by isolating centers that have their own HBOT facilities. METHODS: We queried all centers in the University Health Consortium (UHC) database from 2008 to 2010 that have their own HBOT facilities (n=14). Cases of NSTI were identified by International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) diagnosis codes, which included Fournier gangrene (608.83), necrotizing fasciitis (728.86), and gas gangrene (040.0). Status of HBOT was identified by the presence (HBOT) or absence (control) of ICD-9 procedure code 93.95. Our cohort was risk-stratified and matched by UHC's validated severity of illness (SOI) score. Comparisons were then made using univariate tests of association and multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS: There were 1,583 NSTI cases at the 14 HBOT-capable centers. 117 (7%) cases were treated with HBOT. Univariate analysis showed that there was no difference between HBOT and control groups in hospital length of stay, direct cost, complications, and mortality across the three less severe SOI classes (minor, moderate, and major). However, for extreme SOI the HBOT group had fewer complications (45% vs. 66%; p<0.01) and fewer deaths (4% vs. 23%; p<0.01). Multivariable analysis showed that patients who did not receive HBOT were less likely to survive their index hospitalization (odds ratio, 10.6; 95% CI 5.2-25.1). CONCLUSION: At HBOT-capable centers, receiving HBOT was associated with a significant survival benefit. Use of HBOT in conjunction with current practices for the treatment of NSTI can be both a cost-effective and life-saving therapy, in particular for the sickest patients.

Epidemiology and outcomes of community-acquired Clostridium difficile infections in Medicare beneficiaries.

BACKGROUND: The incidence of community-acquired Clostridium difficile (CACD) is increasing in the United States. Many CACD infections occur in the elderly, who are predisposed to poor outcomes. We aimed to describe the epidemiology and outcomes of CACD in a nationally representative sample of Medicare beneficiaries. STUDY DESIGN: We queried a 5% random sample of Medicare beneficiaries (2009-2011 Part A inpatient and Part D prescription drug claims; n = 864,604) for any hospital admission with a primary ICD-9 diagnosis code for C difficile (008.45). We examined patient sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, preadmission exposure to oral antibiotics, earlier treatment with oral vancomycin or metronidazole, inpatient outcomes (eg, colectomy, ICU stay, length of stay, mortality), and subsequent admissions for C difficile. RESULTS: A total of 1,566 (0.18%) patients were admitted with CACD. Of these, 889 (56.8%) received oral antibiotics within 90 days of admission. Few were being treated with oral metronidazole (n = 123 [7.8%]) or vancomycin (n = 13 [0.8%]) at the time of admission. Although 223 (14%) patients required ICU admission, few (n = 15 [1%]) underwent colectomy. Hospital mortality was 9%. Median length of stay among survivors was 5 days (interquartile range 3 to 8 days). One fifth of survivors were readmitted with C difficile, with a median follow-up time of 393 days (interquartile range 129 to 769 days). CONCLUSIONS: Nearly half of the Medicare beneficiaries admitted with CACD have no recent antibiotic exposure. High mortality and readmission rates suggest that the burden of C difficile on patients and the health care system will increase as the US population ages. Additional efforts at primary prevention and eradication might be warranted.

Management of pulmonary contusion and flail chest: an Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma practice management guideline.

BACKGROUND: Despite the prevalence and recognized association of pulmonary contusion and flail chest (PC-FC) as a combined, complex injury pattern with interrelated pathophysiology, the mortality and morbidity of this entity have not improved during the last three decades. The purpose of this updated EAST practice management guideline was to present evidence-based recommendations for the treatment of PC-FC. METHODS: A query was conducted of MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed and Cochrane databases for the period from January 1966 through June 30, 2011. All evidence was reviewed and graded by two members of the guideline committee. Guideline formulation was performed by committee consensus. RESULTS: Of the 215 articles identified in the search, 129 were deemed appropriate for review, grading, and inclusion in the guideline. This practice management guideline has a total of six Level 2 and eight Level 3 recommendations. CONCLUSION: Patients with PC-FC should not be excessively fluid restricted but should be resuscitated to maintain signs of adequate tissue perfusion. Obligatory mechanical ventilation in the absence of respiratory failure should be avoided. The use of optimal analgesia and aggressive chest physiotherapy should be applied to minimize the likelihood of respiratory failure. Epidural catheter is the preferred mode of analgesia delivery in severe flail chest injury. Paravertebral analgesia may be equivalent to epidural analgesia and may be appropriate in certain situations when epidural is contraindicated.A trial of mask continuous positive airway pressure should be considered in alert patients with marginal respiratory status. Patients requiring mechanical ventilation should be supported in a manner based on institutional and physician preference and separated from the ventilator at the earliest possible time. Positive end-expiratory pressure or continuous positive airway pressure should be provided. High-frequency oscillatory ventilation should be considered for patients failing conventional ventilatory modes. Independent lung ventilation may also be considered in severe unilateral pulmonary contusion when shunt cannot be otherwise corrected.Surgical fixation of flail chest may be considered in cases of severe flail chest failing to wean from the ventilator or when thoracotomy is required for other reasons. Self-activating multidisciplinary protocols for the treatment of chest wall injuries may improve outcome and should be considered where feasible.Steroids should not be used in the therapy of pulmonary contusion. Diuretics may be used in the setting of hydrostatic fluid overload in hemodynamically stable patients or in the setting of known concurrent congestive heart failure.

The dangers of being a "weekend warrior": a new call for injury prevention efforts.

BACKGROUND: Nonprofessionals routinely perform high-risk home maintenance activities otherwise regulated by the Occupational Health and Safety Administration when professionals perform the same work. Reducing the risks taken by these "weekend warriors" has not been the focus of injury prevention efforts. This study describes injury patterns and outcomes for nonprofessionals attempting home roof and tree maintenance. METHODS: We queried our trauma registry for all adult patients (age, ≥18 years) with injury codes for "fall-from-height" or "struck-by-tree" (2005-present) and reviewed charts to determine injuries sustained during home roof or tree work. Patients injured during occupational duties (indicated by Workman's Compensation) were excluded. Descriptive statistics were used to determine patient demographics, injury patterns, and outcomes. RESULTS: A total of 129 patients were injured performing roof and tree maintenance during the study period. Of these patients, 90 (69.8%) were fall from height and 39 (30.2%) were struck by tree. Mean (SD) age was 45 (14) years. The majority were male (124, 96.1%) and white (116, 89.9%). Nearly half (59, 45.7%) were privately insured; a quarter (32, 24.8%) had no insurance. Mean (SD) Injury Severity Score was 12.7 (9.3). Injury distributions were as follows: head injury, 48.8%; facial fractures, 10.1%; cervical spine fractures, 3.9%; thoracic, lumbar, and sacral spine fractures, 28.1%; rib fractures, 27.3%; intrathoracic injuries, 22.5%; liver/spleen injuries, 6.2%; pelvic fractures, 15.6%; upper-extremity fractures, 27.3%; and lower-extremity fractures, 14.7%. Of the patients, 19 (14.7%) had one or more regions with Abbreviated Injury Scale score of higher than 3. Mean (SD) length of stay was 5.3 (7.6) days. Except for 2 deaths (1.6%), discharge dispositions were as follows: home, 64.2%; home with services, 10.1%; rehabilitation, 17.8%; and skilled nursing, 5.4%. CONCLUSION: Weekend warriors performing home roof and tree maintenance sustain serious injuries with a potential for a long-term disability at young ages. Injury prevention efforts should educate the public about the hazards of high-risk home maintenance, possibly encouraging Occupational Health and Safety Administration-regulated protective measures or deferral to trained professionals.

Successful nonoperative management of the most severe blunt liver injuries: a multicenter study of the research consortium of new England centers for trauma.

HYPOTHESIS: Grade 4 and grade 5 blunt liver injuries can be safely treated by nonoperative management (NOM). DESIGN: Retrospective case series. SETTING: Eleven level I and level II trauma centers in New England. PATIENTS: Three hundred ninety-three adult patients with grade 4 or grade 5 blunt liver injury who were admitted between January 1, 2000, and January 31, 2010. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Failure of NOM (f-NOM), defined as the need for a delayed operation. RESULTS: One hundred thirty-one patients (33.3%) were operated on immediately, typically because of hemodynamic instability. Among 262 patients (66.7%) who were offered a trial of NOM, treatment failed in 23 patients (8.8%) (attributed to the liver in 17, with recurrent liver bleeding in 7 patients and biliary peritonitis in 10 patients). Multivariate analysis identified the following 2 independent predictors of f-NOM: systolic blood pressure on admission of 100 mm Hg or less and the presence of other abdominal organ injury. Failure of NOM was observed in 23% of patients with both independent predictors and in 4% of those with neither of the 2 independent predictors. No patients in the f-NOM group experienced life-threatening events because of f-NOM, and mortality was similar between patients with successful NOM (5.4%) and patients with f-NOM (8.7%) (P = .52). Among patients with successful NOM, liver-specific complications developed in 10.0% and were managed definitively without major sequelae. CONCLUSIONS: Nonoperative management was offered safely in two-thirds of grade 4 and grade 5 blunt liver injuries, with a 91.3% success rate. Only 6.5% of patients with NOM required a delayed operation because of liver-specific issues, and none experienced life-threatening complications because of the delay.

Promise and challenges of anticoagulation with dabigatran.

Dabigatran, marketed as Pradaxa (Boehringer Ingelheim) in the USA, is a direct thrombin inhibitor that holds great promise. It has been shown to reduce the risk of stroke and venous thromboembolism with similar if not greater efficacy than warfarin and with far fewer side effects. However, like other anticoagulants, it can cause severe bleeding complications and lacks a specific antidote with proven efficacy. The patient presented here was on dabigatran and sustained a traumatic intracranial hemorrhage (ICH). The ICH continued to progress despite prompt initiation of 3h of hemodialysis in an effort to remove the offending drug from the circulation. Through this case report, we highlight the challenges of anticoagulation with dabigatran including the lack of routine testing for monitoring its effect and of a specific antidote. We also discuss the potential role of dialysis in treating patients with life-threatening bleeding on dabigatran.

Management of the most severely injured spleen: a multicenter study of the Research Consortium of New England Centers for Trauma (ReCONECT).

OBJECTIVE: To determine the rate and predictors of failure of nonoperative management (NOM) in grade IV and V blunt splenic injuries (BSI). DESIGN: Retrospective case series. SETTING: Fourteen trauma centers in New England. PATIENTS: A total of 388 adult patients with a grade IV or V BSI who were admitted between January 1, 2001, and August 31, 2008. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Failure of NOM (f-NOM). RESULTS: A total of 164 patients (42%) were operated on immediately. Of the remaining 224 who were offered a trial of NOM, the treatment failed in 85 patients (38%). At the end, 64% of patients required surgery. Multivariate analysis identified 2 independent predictors of f-NOM: grade V BSI and the presence of a brain injury. The likelihood of f-NOM was 32% if no predictor was present, 56% if 1 was present, and 100% if both were present. The mortality of patients for whom NOM failed was almost 7-fold higher than those with successful NOM (4.7% vs 0.7%; P = .07). CONCLUSIONS: Nearly two-thirds of patients with grade IV or V BSI require surgery. A grade V BSI and brain injury predict failure of NOM. This data must be taken into account when generalizations are made about the overall high success rates of NOM, which do not represent severe BSI.

Blunt pancreatoduodenal injury: a multicenter study of the Research Consortium of New England Centers for Trauma (ReCONECT).

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the safety of nonoperative management (NOM), to examine the diagnostic sensitivity of computed tomography (CT), and to identify missed diagnoses and related outcomes in patients with blunt pancreatoduodenal injury (BPDI). DESIGN: Retrospective multicenter study. SETTING: Eleven New England trauma centers (7 academic and 4 nonacademic). PATIENTS: Two hundred thirty patients (>15 years old) with BPDI admitted to the hospital during 11 years. Each BPDI was graded from 1 (lowest) to 5 (highest) according to the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma grading system. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Success of NOM, sensitivity of CT, BPDI-related complications, length of hospital stay, and mortality. RESULTS: Ninety-seven patients (42.2%) with mostly grades 1 and 2 BPDI were selected for NOM: NOM failed in 10 (10.3%), 10 (10.3%) developed BPDI-related complications (3 in patients in whom NOM failed), and 7 (7.2%) died (none related to failure of NOM). The remaining 133 patients were operated on urgently: 34 (25.6%) developed BPDI-related complications and 20 (15.0%) died. The initial CT missed BPDI in 30 patients (13.0%); 4 of them (13.3%) died but not because of the BPDI. The mortality rate in patients without a missed diagnosis was 8.8% (P = .50). There was no correlation between time to diagnosis and length of hospital stay (Spearman r = 0.06; P = .43). The sensitivity of CT for BPDI was 75.7% (76% for pancreatic and 70% for duodenal injuries). CONCLUSIONS: The NOM of low-grade BPDI is safe despite occasional failures. Missed diagnosis of BPDI continues to occur despite advances in CT but does not seem to cause adverse outcomes in most patients.

Short-term outcomes of splenectomy avoidance in trauma patients.

BACKGROUND: Strategies for splenic preservation for trauma patients have gained acceptance; however, meaningful outcome evaluations have not been performed. To better understand the consequences of managing patients with splenic injuries, the short-term outcomes of different types of management strategies were examined. We defined splenic preservation as observation of splenic injury, splenic embolization, and splenorrhaphy. We defined splenic salvage as splenic embolization and splenorrhaphy. METHODS: Retrospective descriptive study examining splenic injury management of adult patients at an urban level 1 trauma center. RESULTS: During 31 months, 170 splenic injuries were captured by the trauma registry. Average age was 31.7 years, and the average Injury Severity Score (ISS) was 22.7; patients had multiple associated injuries. The average length of stay was 15.7 days, and mortality that was not associated with splenic injury was 10%. Fifty-eight patients underwent immediate splenectomy, with 3 patients requiring percutaneous drainage for pancreatic leaks and 1 patient requiring reoperation for a gastrocutaneous fistula (overall morbidity 6.9%). Eighty five patients were managed nonoperatively, with 10 patients (11.9%) failing expectant management; they underwent subsequent splenectomies. Eleven patients were managed by splenic artery embolization. Three patients (27.2%) required further intervention; 1 required re-embolization; and 2 required splenectomy. Sixteen patients underwent surgical splenorrhaphy, with 2 patients failing (12.5%), thus requiring eventual splenectomies. Morbidity for splenic preservation (observation, splenic embolization, and splenorrhaphy) was 13.4%, whereas morbidity for splenic salvage (embolization and splenorrhaphy) was 18.5%. CONCLUSIONS: In the adult population, splenic preservation has 2-fold and splenic salvage close to 3-fold morbidity compared with immediate splenectomy in management of patients with blunt and penetrating splenic injuries.