Admission hyperglycaemia is associated with higher mortality in patients with hip fracture

OBJECTIVE: To determine the proportion of hip-fracture patients with admission hyperglycaemia, and, when present, whether it was associated with a worse outcome (i.e. increased length of hospital stay, admission to ICU, or mortality). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Over a 2-year period, we retrospectively analysed records of patients with a primary diagnosis of hip fracture (ICD-9-CM 820.x). The records were retrieved from an electronic hospital database. RESULTS: An admission blood sugar level (aBSL) greater than 140 mg/dl was observed in 34% of the patients and was associated with a higher in-hospital mortality (P=0.042). ICU admissions and length of stay did not differ for patients having an aBSL above or below the 140 mg/dl cut-off. CONCLUSION: Hyperglycaemia is common in hip-fracture patients. A high aBSL might serve as a prognostic indicator in hip-fracture patients. To our knowledge, this is the first report of hyperglycaemia-associated mortality in less severely traumatised patients, who generally are not admitted to an ICU.