Prevalence of cardiovascular and respiratory complications following trauma in patients with obesity.
Teresa Bell, Samantha Stokes, Peter C Jenkins and 2 others
PMID 28648466WHAT IT FOUND
Obese trauma patients had cardiovascular or respiratory complications in 12.6% versus 5.2% without obesity.
After accounting for age, injury severity and other factors, patients with obesity were at approximately 80% greater risk.
Key findings
01The analysis included 275,393 trauma patients, 14,210 with obesity and 261,183 without obesity, and prevalence of cardiovascular or respiratory complications was 12.6% among patients with obesity and 5.2% among patients without obesity.
02In the multivariable model, patients with obesity had approximately 80% greater risk of cardiovascular or respiratory complications.
03Individual complication models showed 82% increased ARDS risk, 69% increased cardiac arrest risk, 83% increased DVT risk, 63% increased unplanned intubation risk, and over twice the PE risk.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study used existing trauma registry records, so it could not verify how obesity was coded or whether BMI was measured. Obesity was recorded as a single category rather than measured BMI, so it could not show whether risk rises with higher BMI. The data did not include surgical site or how urgent surgery was, so it could not identify which operations or emergencies were most risky. The study did not test any care strategy, so it cannot show that extra monitoring or different treatment prevents complications.
Declared interests
There was no conflict of interest declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the 80% greater risk as proof that obesity caused the complications. The study was retrospective, used coded obesity rather than measured BMI, and did not test a treatment.