Purpose: To analyze the associations of oral anticoagulant and antiplatelet treatments in older patients requiring surgical treatment for hip fracture with mortality, length of stay, waiting time to surgery and postsurgical immediate complications.
Methods: A prospective observational study, including surgically treated hip fracture patients aged 65 years and older. We analyzed admission status variables, and time to surgery, length of stay and immediate surgical and medical complications. We recorded a 2-year survival follow-up.
Results: Of the 237 patients studied, 32.5% received antiplatelet treatment and 17.7% received oral anticoagulant treatment. The overall 2-year mortality was 29.1%. The 2-year mortality rate reached the 33.8% for antiplatelet-treated patients (n.s.) and 45.2% for oral anticoagulated patients (p = 0.011). The length of stay increased significantly associated with the oral anticoagulant or high-dose antiplatelet treatment (p < 0.001). The same happened for the time to surgery (p < 0.001), but no delay was observed for patients with low-dose antiplatelet treatment. Oral anticoagulated and antiplatelet-treated patients had a higher Charlson comorbidity index (p = 0.004, p = 0.019) and ASA score (p = 0.006, p = 0.011). Those treatments were also associated with a higher rate of some immediate postsurgical medical complications. We found a relationship between low hemoglobin at admission and high-dose antiplatelet treatment (p = 0.044).
Conclusions: Hip fracture patients following previous oral anticoagulant treatment have a higher 2-year mortality rate. The oral anticoagulant or high-dose antiplatelet treatments are significantly associated with an increase in the length of stay, related to time to surgery, but we could not demonstrate an effect on early mortality.
Keywords: Anticoagulant; Antiplatelet; Antithrombotic; Hip fracture; Mortality.