Citation

Kim SH, Szabo RM, Marder RA. Arthritis Care Res. (2010) 2012; 64(3): 407-414.

Affiliation

Department of Public Health Sciences, University of California, Davis. sunny.kim@ucdmc.ucdavis.edu.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2012, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1002/acr.21563

PMID

22162357

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate the occurrence of emergency department (ED) visits due to humerus fractures in the United States (U.S.). METHODS: We analyzed the 2008 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample, which contained approximately 28 million ED records. We identified the cases of interest using diagnostic codes for proximal, shaft, and distal humerus fractures. RESULTS: In 2008, approximately 370,000 ED visits in the U.S. resulted from humerus fractures. Proximal humerus fractures were the most common, accounting for 50% of humerus fractures. The incidence rate of proximal humerus fractures followed the shape of an exponential function in the ages 40-84 for women (R(2) =97.9%) and 60-89 for men (R(2) =98.2%). After the exponential increase in these age intervals, the growth rate of proximal humerus fracture slowed and eventually decreased. The peak occurrence of distal humerus fractures was in children aged 5 to 9 years; yet, elderly women had an increased risk. As the baby boomer generation ages, unless fracture prevention programs improve, more than 490,000 ED visits are expected due to humerus fractures in 2030 when the youngest of the baby boomers turn 65 years old. CONCLUSIONS: Compared to epidemiologic studies in Japan and European countries, the incidence rates of humerus fractures are substantially higher in the U.S. The high incidence rate of humerus fractures in the expanding elderly population may contribute to the recent trend of rapid increase in shoulder arthroplasty in the U.S. Rigorous safety measures to reduce falls and improved preventive treatments of osteoporosis are needed. © 2011 by the American College of Rheumatology.

Language: en