ArticleEuropean journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society2022
Geriatric polytrauma patients should not be excluded from aggressive injury treatment based on age alone.
Article in European journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers.
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Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed, 17 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prehospital management and outcomes of traumatic cardiac arrest in older adults: a French nationwide registry study.Resuscitation plus · 2026Article
- Article
- Influence of Antithrombotics on Severely Injured Patients Over 50 With Blunt Abdominal Trauma.European journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society · 2026Article
- Polytrauma in the elderly: who is at risk? A case-control study.BMC geriatrics · 2026Article
- Is level 1 trauma care necessary for all severely injured older patients? Evaluating undertriage and feasibility of care in major and non-major trauma centres in the Netherlands.European journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society · 2025Article
- An Additional Certification as a Centre for Geriatric Trauma Had No Benefit on Mortality Among Seriously Injured Elderly Patients-An Analysis of the TraumaRegister DGUJournal of clinical medicine · 2024Article
- Extremity fractures, attempted suicide, blood transfusion and thromboembolic events are independent risk factors for a prolonged hospital stay in severely injured elderly.Aging clinical and experimental research · 2024Article
- The Road to Sepsis in Geriatric Polytrauma Patients-Can We Forecast Sepsis in Trauma Patients?Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Article
- Early correction of base deficit decreases late mortality in polytrauma.European journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society · 2024Article
- Acute Gastrointestinal Injury in Polytrauma: Special Attention to Elderly Patients.International journal of medical sciences · 2024Observational
- The effect of age on resilience of health-related quality of life among polytrauma patients: a cross-sectional multicenter study.European journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society · 2023Article
- Role of endocrine PACAP in age-related diseases.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2023Review
- VATS-assisted surgical stabilization of rib fractures in flail chest: 1-year follow-up of 105 cases.General thoracic and cardiovascular surgery · 2022Article
- Multiple Organ Dysfunction in Older Major Trauma Critical Care Patients: A Multicenter Prospective Observational Study.Annals of surgery open : perspectives of surgical history, education, and clinical approaches · 2022Article
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Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeAge in severely injured patients has been increasing for decades. Older age is associated with increasing mortality. However, morbidity and mortality could possibly be reduced when accurate and aggressive treatment is provided. This study investigated age-related morbidity and mortality in polytrauma including age-related decisions in initial injury management and withdrawal of life-sustaining therapy (WLST).
methodsA 6.5-year prospective cohort study included consecutive severely injured trauma patients admitted to a Level-1 Trauma Center ICU. Demographics, data on physiology, resuscitation, MODS/ARDS, and infectious complications were prospectively collected. Patients were divided into age subgroups (< 25, 25-49, 50-69, and ≥ 70 years) to make clinically relevant comparisons.
results391 patients (70% males) were included with median ISS of 29 (22-36), 95% sustained blunt injuries. There was no difference in injury severity, resuscitation, urgent surgeries, nor in ventilator days, ICU-LOS, and H-LOS between age groups. Adjusted odds of MODS, ARDS and infectious complications were similar between age groups. 47% of patients ≥ 70 years died, compared to 10-16% in other age groups (P < 0.001). WLST increased with older age, contributing to more than half of deaths ≥ 70 years. TBI was the most common cause of death and decision for treatment withdrawal in all age groups.
conclusionsPatients ≥ 70 years had higher mortality risk even though injury severity and complication rates were similar to other age groups. WLST increased with age with the vast majority due to brain injury. More than half of patients ≥ 70 years survived suggesting geriatric polytrauma patients should not be excluded from aggressive injury treatment based on age alone.
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