Loss of health related quality of life following low-trauma fractures in the elderly. Issue 1 (December 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Tarride, Jean-Eric; Burke, Natasha; Leslie, William; Morin, Suzanne; Adachi, Jonathan; Papaioannou, Alexandra; Bessette, Louis; Brown, Jacques; Pericleous, Louisa; Muratov, Sergei; Hopkins, Robert
• Is Part Of: BMC geriatrics. Volume 16:Issue 1(2016)
• Page Start: 1
• Page End: 11
• Publication Date: 2016-12
• Subjects: Frail elderly -- Fractures -- Health-related quality of life; Geriatrics -- Periodicals; 618.97005
• DOI: 10.1186/s12877-016-0259-5
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1471-2318

Abstract

Abstract Background To estimate the long-term change in health related quality of life (HRQoL) following low-trauma fractures among individuals receiving home care (HC) services or living in long-term care (LTC) facilities using linked healthcare administrative data from Ontario, Canada. Methods HRQoL was estimated using the Health Utility Index (HUI-2) with the InterRai Minimum Data Set (MDS), a mandatory questionnaire for LTC and HC in the province of Ontario (population 14 million). The HUI-2, a validated HRQoL instrument, allows the calculation of health utility where 0 represents death and 1 the best imaginable health state. For reference, the HUI-2 utility value for Canadians aged 80–84 years is 0.61 and the minimal clinically important difference is 0.03. The MDS was linked to Ontario acute care databases for fiscal years 2007–2011 to identify low-trauma fractures using ICD-10-CA codes. Regression models were used to identify predictors of change in HRQoL from pre-fracture levels to 3 years post fracture for several populations. Low-trauma fractures included hip, humerus, vertebral, wrist, multiple and other. Results Twenty-three thousand six-hundred fifty-five unique patients with low-trauma fractures were identified with pre- and post-fracture HRQoL assessments, of which 5057 individuals had at least 3 years of follow-up. Compared to patients receiving HC services (N = 3303), individuals residing in LTC (N = 1754) were older, taking more medications, and had more comorbidities. LTC patients had more hip fractures (49 % of total versus 29 %). For all fracture types, HRQoL decreased immediately following fracture. Although levels rebounded after the first month, HRQoL up to 36 months never returned to pre-fracture levels even for non-hip fracture. For both HC and LTC cohorts, clinically important and statistically significant decreases in HUI-2 utility scores were observed 36 months post fracture. Of the 6 HUI-2 domains, mobility had the largest impact on change in HRQoL. Regression analysis indicated that living with a musculoskeletal disorder or a neurological condition and living in LTC were associated with greater decrements in utility following a fracture. Conclusions Based on the analysis of one of the largest studies on HRQoL to date, among individuals living in LTC facilities or receiving HC services, fractures have a significant permanent impact on HRQoL up to 3 years following fracture.