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Background: We aimed to elucidate management patterns and outcomes of high-risk patients with rib fractures (elderly or flail chest) across non-trauma and trauma centers. We hypothesized highest-capacity (level I) centers would have best outcomes for high-risk patients.
Methods: We queried the 2016 National Emergency Department Sample to identify adults presenting with rib fractures. Multivariable regression assessed ED and inpatient events across non-trauma and level III/II/I trauma centers.
Results: Among 504,085 rib fracture encounters, 46% presented to non-trauma centers. Elderly patients with multiple rib fractures had stepwise increase in inpatient admission odds and stepwise decrease in pneumonia odds at higher-capacity trauma centers compared to non-trauma centers. Among patients with flail chest, odds of undergoing surgical stabilization (SSRF) increased at trauma centers. Undergoing SSRF was associated with reduced mortality but remained underutilized.
Conclusion: Half of patients with rib fractures present to non-trauma centers. Nationwide care-optimization for high-risk patients requires further effort.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.amjsurg.2021.02.013 | DOI Listing |
Cureus
September 2025
Internal Medicine, California Hospital Medical Center, Los Angeles, USA.
Delayed hemothorax (DHTX) is a possible sequelae of thoracic trauma, especially in the setting of patients being treated with anticoagulation. We report the case of an 81-year-old Caucasian man with a DHTX presenting 14 days following an initial emergency department (ED) visit with multiple rib fractures due to a fall from the patient's bed. Upon presentation to the ED a second time, the patient was hospitalized, tested positive for COVID-19, and on the second day of admission underwent video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) without bleeding or other complications.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInd Health
September 2025
Dokuz Eylul University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Occupational Medicine, Turkey.
Jockeys endure considerable physical and psychological demands, rendering them vulnerable to occupational injuries such as fractures, concussions, and soft tissue damage. This descriptive case series presents the medical and occupational histories of three professional jockeys with long-term disabilities following work-related accidents. Each individual commenced their jockey career in early adolescence.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Pediatr Surg
September 2025
Division of Pediatric General and Thoracic Surgery, Seattle Children's Hospital, 4800 Sand Point Way NE, Ocean 9.A.220, Seattle, WA 98105, USA; Department of Surgery, University of Washington, 1959 Pacific Street, Box 356410, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
Purpose: First rib fractures in children are typically associated with high-impact trauma; atraumatic etiologies remain understudied. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the presentation and management of pediatric first rib fractures in the absence of major trauma.
Methods: This is a retrospective study of pediatric patients diagnosed with first rib fractures between 2000-2023 at a quaternary, free-standing children's hospital.
Injury
August 2025
Department of Orthopaedics, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing, China; Engineering Research Center of Bone and Joint Precision Medicine, Ministry of Education, Beijing, China. Electronic address:
Objective: This study aimed to comprehensively describe the clinical characteristics of rib fractures in patients with traumatic thoracic vertebral fractures (TVFs), and to develop machine learning (ML) models for predicting the risk of rib fractures.
Methods: We retrospectively reviewed patients diagnosed with TVFs at a single hospital between January 2007 and November 2024, enrolling 1420 patients and 20 variables. Chest CT scans were used to confirm the presence of rib fractures and to examine their distribution characteristics.
BMJ Open
September 2025
Department of Surgery, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Introduction: Blue light (peak wavelength 442 nm) has been shown to modulate the immune response in preclinical models of intra-abdominal sepsis and pneumonia. pathways involve optic nerve stimulation with transmission to the central nervous system, activation of parasympathetic pathways terminating at the spleen, and downstream immune effects including decreased inflammatory tissue damage and improved pathogen clearance. Related effects on pain mediators including proinflammatory cytokines (interleukin 6, TNF- α) and autonomic tone (increased parasympathetic outflow) suggest possible analgesic properties that would be highly relevant to a trauma population.
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