By Casey Tingle
Geriatric patients with ankle fractures experienced lower 1-year morbidity compared with peers who sustained hip fractures or had an alternative admitting diagnosis, according to researchers of this study, even after they accounted for both age and comorbidity.
Using the 2008 Medicare Part A database to identify patients aged 65 years or older, researchers found 19,648 patients who were diagnosed with an ankle fracture; 193,980 patients with hip fracture; and 5,801,831 patients with a diagnosis other than hip or ankle fracture. Researchers examined 1-year mortality rates using a multivariate analysis that factored for both patient age and pre-existing comorbidities as the primary outcome measure. Additional morbidity, as reflected by length of stay, discharge disposition, readmissions and medical complications, was the secondary outcome measure. 