Overlapping Surgery for Distal Radius Fractures: Is It Safe?

Area of Science:

• Orthopaedic Surgery
• Trauma Surgery

Background:

• Distal radius fractures are common injuries requiring surgical intervention.
• Open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) is a standard treatment for displaced distal radius fractures.
• Surgical scheduling efficiency is crucial in trauma centers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare unplanned return to surgery rates between overlapping and consecutive cases of distal radius fracture ORIF.
• To evaluate the impact of overlapping surgical schedules on patient outcomes and procedure efficiency.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective review of 99 patients undergoing distal radius fracture ORIF at a Level 1 trauma center.
• Comparison of outcomes between an "overlapping" group (≥30 minutes overlap) and a consecutive group.
• Primary outcome: unplanned return to surgery within 1 year. Secondary outcomes: infection, readmission, nonunion, malunion.

Main Results:

• No significant difference in unplanned return to surgery rates (5% overlapping vs. 3% consecutive).
• Significantly longer procedure times in the overlapping group (151 ± 54 minutes) compared to the consecutive group (126 ± 35 minutes; p = 0.02).
• No significant differences in infection, readmission, nonunion, or malunion rates between groups.

Conclusions:

• Overlapping surgical scheduling for distal radius fracture ORIF does not appear to compromise patient safety regarding unplanned returns to surgery.
• Overlapping schedules lead to increased operative times, suggesting potential inefficiencies.
• Larger studies are needed to definitively confirm the absence of differences in patient outcomes.