Association between upper extremity fractures and weight status in children
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Published on: January 29, 2018
Steven A Singer1, James M Chamberlain, Laura Tosi
1Department of Emergency Medicine, George Washington University Medical Center, Washington, DC, USA.
Insights
Children aged 5-9 with upper extremity fractures (UEF) have higher odds of increased weight status. This association was not observed in older children, suggesting age-specific factors influence fracture risk and weight.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Orthopedics
- Childhood Obesity Research
- Fracture Epidemiology
Background:
- Increased weight status is a growing concern in pediatric populations.
- Understanding factors associated with pediatric fractures is crucial for public health.
- Previous research has not fully elucidated the relationship between weight status and upper extremity fractures (UEF) in children.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the odds of increased weight status in children with UEF compared to control groups.
- To investigate potential age-related differences in the association between UEF and weight status.
Main Methods:
- Secondary analysis of the Pediatric Risk of Admission (PRISA and PRISA II) datasets.
- Inclusion of children aged 5-14 without chronic illness in four groups: UEF, upper extremity nonfracture injury, minor head injury, and noninjured controls.
- Weight-for-age/sex percentiles and logistic regression were used to compare weight status and calculate odds ratios, stratified by age.
Main Results:
- Children aged 5-9 with UEF showed significantly increased odds of having weight above the 50th percentile compared to all control groups.
- No significant differences in weight status odds ratios were found for children aged 10-14 with UEF compared to controls.
- The study included 308 patients aged 5-9 and 207 patients aged 10-14.
Conclusions:
- The association between UEF and increased weight status appears to be age-dependent, primarily affecting younger children (5-9 years).
- Potential explanations include differential injury mechanisms, mobility patterns, or weight-related bone qualities in prepubescent versus pubescent children.
- Further research is recommended to explore fracture epidemiology and risk stratified by age and weight status in pediatric populations.
Objectives:
Our objective was to determine the odds of having an increased weight status among children with upper extremity fracture (UEF) compared with 3 control groups without fractures.
Methods:
This is a secondary analysis of data from the Pediatric Risk of Admission (PRISA and PRISA II) data sets. Patients without chronic illness between the ages of 5 to 14 years were included in the following groups: (1) UEF study group, (2) upper extremity nonfracture injured control group, (3) minor-head-injured control group, and (4) noninjured probability control group. Weight for age/sex percentiles was used to evaluate weight status. The proportions of patients with weight for age/sex greater than the 50th, 85th, and 95th percentiles were determined. Logistic regression was used to generate odds ratios comparing the UEF group with each control group stratified by age.
Results:
This analysis included 308 patients in the 5- to 9-year age group and 207 patients in the 10- to 14-year age group. The odds of having a weight greater than the 50th percentile for age/sex were significantly increased among children with UEF aged 5 to 9 years compared with all control groups. There were no significant differences in the corresponding odds ratios for children with UEF aged 10 to 14 years compared with controls.
Conclusions:
These findings may be related to differential injury mechanisms, mobility patterns, or underlying patient vulnerability to fracture based on weight status and bone qualities in prepubescent versus pubescent populations. Further investigation should explore fracture epidemiology and fracture risk in children stratified by age.
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