Fracture prevalence during an unusual period of snow and ice in the Netherlands

Van Den Brand, CL; Van Der Linden, MC; Van Der Linden, N; Rhemrev, SJ

Fracture prevalence during an unusual period of snow and ice in the Netherlands

Van Den Brand, CL Van Der Linden, MC Van Der Linden, N Rhemrev, SJ

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Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: International Journal of Emergency Medicine, 2014, 7 (1)
Issue Date:: 2014-01-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Van Den Brand, CL	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Van Der Linden, MC	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Van Der Linden, N	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Rhemrev, SJ	en_US
dc.date.available	2014-04-20	en_US
dc.date.issued	2014-01-01	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	International Journal of Emergency Medicine, 2014, 7 (1)	en_US
dc.identifier.issn	1865-1372	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/116015
dc.description.abstract	Background: The objective of the current study was to assess the effect of an unusual 10-day snow and ice period on the prevalence of fractures in an emergency department (ED) in the Netherlands. Furthermore, patients with fractures during the snow and ice period were compared to those in the control period with respect to gender, age, location of accident, length of stay, disposition, and anatomical site of the injury. Methods: Fracture prevalence during a 10-day study period with snow and ice (January 14, 2013 until January 23, 2013) was compared to a similar 10-day control period without snow or ice (January 16, 2012 until January 25, 2012). The records of all patients with a fracture were manually selected. Besides this, basic demographics, type of fracture, and location of the accident (inside or outside) were compared. Results: A total of 1,785 patients visited the ED during the study period and 1,974 during the control period. A fracture was found in 224 patients during the study period and in 109 patients during the control period (P <0.01). More fractures sustained outside account for this difference. No differences were found in gender, mean age, and length of ED stay. However, during the snow and ice period the percentage of fractures in the middle-aged (31-60 yrs) was significantly higher than in the control period (P <0.01). Conclusions: The number of fractures sustained more than doubled during a period with snow and ice as compared to the control period. In contrast to other studies outside the Netherlands, not the elderly, but the middle-aged were most affected by the slippery conditions. © 2014 van den Brand et al.; licensee Springer.	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	International Journal of Emergency Medicine	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1186/1865-1380-7-17	en_US
dc.title	Fracture prevalence during an unusual period of snow and ice in the Netherlands	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	1	en_US
utslib.citation.volume	7	en_US
utslib.for	1402 Applied Economics	en_US
utslib.for	1103 Clinical Sciences	en_US
utslib.for	1199 Other Medical and Health Sciences	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Business
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Strength - CHERE - Centre for Health Economics Research and Evaluation
utslib.copyright.status	open_access
pubs.issue	1	en_US
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US
pubs.volume	7	en_US

Abstract:

Background: The objective of the current study was to assess the effect of an unusual 10-day snow and ice period on the prevalence of fractures in an emergency department (ED) in the Netherlands. Furthermore, patients with fractures during the snow and ice period were compared to those in the control period with respect to gender, age, location of accident, length of stay, disposition, and anatomical site of the injury. Methods: Fracture prevalence during a 10-day study period with snow and ice (January 14, 2013 until January 23, 2013) was compared to a similar 10-day control period without snow or ice (January 16, 2012 until January 25, 2012). The records of all patients with a fracture were manually selected. Besides this, basic demographics, type of fracture, and location of the accident (inside or outside) were compared. Results: A total of 1,785 patients visited the ED during the study period and 1,974 during the control period. A fracture was found in 224 patients during the study period and in 109 patients during the control period (P <0.01). More fractures sustained outside account for this difference. No differences were found in gender, mean age, and length of ED stay. However, during the snow and ice period the percentage of fractures in the middle-aged (31-60 yrs) was significantly higher than in the control period (P <0.01). Conclusions: The number of fractures sustained more than doubled during a period with snow and ice as compared to the control period. In contrast to other studies outside the Netherlands, not the elderly, but the middle-aged were most affected by the slippery conditions. © 2014 van den Brand et al.; licensee Springer.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/116015