Does Comanagement of Patients With Hip Fracture Influence 30-Day Outcomes

Comanagement of hip fractures is thought to optimize outcomes for these high-risk patients, but this practice is not universal. We aimed to determine whether comanagement of patients with hip fracture affects 30-day outcomes.

The American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database was queried for all hip fractures between January 2015 and January 2017, totaling 15 461 patients (144 hospitals). Patients were divided into 3 cohorts: 11 233 comanaged throughout stay (CM), 2537 partially comanaged during stay (PCM), or 1691 not comanaged (NCM), by orthopedic surgeons with medicine physicians or geriatricians. Data collected included demographics, hip fracture type, postoperative outcomes, and length of stay (LOS). Logistic regression and linear regression analyses were performed.

Both CM and PCM patients were older, with more dementia, poorer mobility, and more comorbidities than NCM patients. Mortality rates were 4.55%, 0.81%, and 0.33% for CM, PCM, and NCM, respectively, and risk-adjusted odds ratios (ORs) were 1.63 (95% confidence interval = 1.22-2.23) and 1.22 (0.87-1.74) for CM and PCM, respectively, compared to NCM. Morbidity rates were 11.06%, 15.45%, and 7.63% for CM, PCM, and NCM, respectively, and ORs were 1.74 (1.41-2.16) and 1.94 (1.57-2.41) for CM and PCM, respectively, compared to NCM. Risk-adjusted mean square LOS was 6.38, 8.80, and 7.23 for CM, PCM, and NC, respectively (P < .01).

Comanaged patients with hip fracture had poorer cognition, function, and general health, with the shortest LOS. Surprisingly, NCM was associated with reduced morbidity and mortality, which may relate to them being the healthiest patients. Overall, our findings still support orthogeriatric comanagement in this high-risk group to maximize outcomes.