The Impact of Gender on Complications and Outcomes of Pelvic Fracture

• Published in: The American surgeon 2017-04, Vol.83 (4), p.106-109
• Main Authors: Adams, John M., Bogdanovski, Dorian A., Difazio, Louis T., Bilaniuk, Jaroslaw W., Siegel, Brian K., Antonioli, Luca, Pilip, Stefanie A., Nemeth, Zoltan H.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 17β-Estradiol; Accidents; Age; Animal models; Bleeding; Blood transfusion; Bone surgery; Complications; Data collection; Death; Embolism; Embolization; Energy; Estrogens; Fatalities; Females; Fever; Fractures; Gender; Hemorrhage; Hospitals; Infections; Injuries; Intervention; Long bone; Males; Medical personnel; Mortality; Patients; Pneumonia; Population studies; Statistical analysis; Subpopulations; Surgery; Testosterone; Thorax; Thromboembolism; Thrombosis; Transfusion; Trauma; Ventilators; Women
• ISSN: 0003-1348; 1555-9823
• DOI: 10.1177/000313481708300401

Pelvic fractures are usually the result of high energy blunt trauma and are commonly associated with several other injuries, leaving patients with pelvic fractures at risk of significant complications and mortality.1, 2 In recent years, the incidence of pelvic trauma in female patients has been increasing, although the rate is still lower than that of male patients.1 It has been suggested that gender plays a significant role in survival and complications after trauma and sepsis.3 The reasons postulated for these observed differences between male and female patients are based on both the beneficial effects of the female hormone estrogen and the harmful effects of the male hormone testosterone.3, 4 Human clinical studies, however, have resulted in mixed and conflicting observations when compared with the findings of animal models and some have found better outcomes in male trauma patients.4 The aim of this study was to identify differences and/or similarities in outcome, major complications, and characteristics of pelvic trauma among both male and female patients. [...]we wanted to compare several critical parameters between male and female patients with pelvic fracture treated at our American College of Surgeons Level I regional trauma center. [...]using a multivariate linear regression model, we wished to draw conclusions on gender's effect on the outcome of pelvic fracture. Data on age, mechanism of injury, Injury Severity Score (ISS), type of pelvic fracture, intensive care unit (ICU) length of stay, hospital length of stay (LOS), ventilator days, admission prothrombin time, transfusion of blood products, pneumonia, other infections, development...