Severe aortic stenosis is associated with perioperative mortality in proximal femur fracture patients

OBJECTIVES: Evaluate the correlation between aortic stenosis and perioperative mortality in patients following surgical fixation of proximal femur fractures. DESIGN: Retrospectively reviewed case series. SETTING: Two Academic, Level 1 Trauma Centers. PATIENTS/PARTICIPANTS: One hundred fifty-eight patients, definitively diagnosed with aortic stenosis by means of echocardiogram, who underwent surgical fixation for an isolated proximal femur fracture (OTA/AO 31-A, 31-B, 32-A, 32-B, and 32-C fractures) between January 2000 and June 2015. The severity of the aortic stenosis was based upon accepted echocardiographic hemodynamic parameters designated by the 2014 American Heart Association guidelines. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Post Injury mortality, 30-day mortality, and 1-year mortality. SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Postoperative mortality stratified by severity of aortic stenosis based on aortic valve area (AVA) and ejection fracture (EF) as determined by preoperative echocardiography. RESULTS: One hundred fifty-eight patients were available for final analysis. Kaplan–Meier survival analysis revealed a significantly longer time to mortality among Non-severe aortic stenosis patients compared to Severe aortic stenosis patients, P value .006. Twenty-three percent of patients with Severe aortic stenosis and 10% of patients with Non-severe aortic stenosis died within 30 days of surgery. No significant difference was observed in mean survival among AS patients who underwent surgery within 48 hours of injury (34.5 months) and those delayed more than 48 hours after injury (25.0 months), P value .116. Among the commonly measured hemodynamic parameters of aortic stenosis, only AVA and EF were significantly associated with mortality, P value .015, and P value < .001, respectively. There were no significant effects for Aortic Vmax, Peak ΔP, and Mean ΔP. An AVA of 0.8 cm(2) or less is associated with a significantly shorter (22 months) postinjury mortality than patients with an AVA > 0.8 cm(2.) (37 months), P value .009. CONCLUSIONS: Severe aortic stenosis is associated with a shorter postoperative time to mortality after surgical fixation of hip fractures compared to patients with Non-severe stenosis. Aortic valve area and Ejection Fraction are the only hemodynamic parameters significantly associated with postoperative mortality. Level of Evidence: Prognostic Level III