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. 2016 Sep;7(3):115-20.
doi: 10.1177/2151458516647989. Epub 2016 May 17.

Low Levels of Hemoglobin at Admission Are Associated With Increased 30-Day Mortality in Patients With Hip Fracture

Katrine Praetorius  1 , Christian M Madsen  1 , Bo Abrahamsen  2 , Henrik L Jørgensen  3 , Jes B Lauritzen  1 , Anne Sofie B Laulund  1
Affiliations

Low Levels of Hemoglobin at Admission Are Associated With Increased 30-Day Mortality in Patients With Hip Fracture

Katrine Praetorius et al. Geriatr Orthop Surg Rehabil. 2016 Sep.

Abstract

Introduction: Previous smaller studies suggest that anemia is a risk factor for mortality in patients with hip fracture. The purpose of this investigation was to assess the correlation between hemoglobin at admission with 30-day mortality following a hip fracture in a large-scale study.

Patients and methods: From January 1996 to December 2012, all patients with hip fracture (>60 years of age) admitted to Bispebjerg Hospital, Copenhagen, were identified from a local hip fracture database. We excluded conservatively treated patients and patients who died preoperatively.

Results: Seven thousand four hundred twenty-one consecutive patients with hip fracture were identified. Of those 7319 had a hemoglobin measurement on admission and were thus eligible for further analysis. Mean hemoglobin for patients alive at 30 days was 7.6 (standard deviation [SD]: 1.0) and for deceased patients 7.4 (SD: 1.1), P < .0001. Mean age was 82.6 years (SD: 8.5), and 76.5% of the population were female (Nfemales = 5600). The 30-day mortality decreases for every increase in hemoglobin of 1.0 mmol/L in a univariate analysis (P < .0001). The hazard ratio (HR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) for 30-day mortality in patients with anemia (<7.3 mmol/L for females and <8.3 mmol/L for males; Nanemic = 3235) was 1.66 (CI: 1.43-1.91, P < .0001). Adjusting for age, type of fracture, gender, and comorbidities (Charlson score) slightly attenuated the risk estimate (HR: 1.21, CI: 1.03-1.41, P = .02).

Conclusion: This study demonstrates increased 30-day mortality in patients with low hemoglobin at admission, even after adjusting for comorbidities.

Keywords: anemia; hemoglobin; hip fractures; mortality.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting Interests: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Databases included in the study used to combine and identify information about each patient.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
The 30-day mortality decreases for every increase in hemoglobin of 1.0 mmol/L in a univariate analysis (P < .0001).
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Hazard ratios for 30-day mortality determined with Cox proportional hazards models.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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