LO027: Cervical spine injury in trauma patients 65 years and older immobilised in the prehospital setting

Abstract

Introduction: Following a protocol derived from the Canadian C-spine Rule (CCR), patients 65 years and older transported by ambulance after trauma require full spinal immobilisation. Immobilisation complicates the transport and the evaluation; potential side effects have been recognized. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of mechanism of trauma and age on the rate of cervical injury in a geriatric population. Methods: We conducted a retrospective observational study on patients 65 years and older transported by ambulance to a level-one trauma center from March 2008 to October 2013. The outcome was the rate of clinically important cervical spine injury (CICSI), defined as any fracture, dislocation or ligamentous injury needing treatment or specialised follow up. The rate was calculated in the geriatric population and in the subgroup of patients with minor trauma, defined as a fall from a standing height, a chair or a bed. We then looked at the rate of CICSI based on age to define a subgroup at lower risk of lesion. Results: We included 1221 patients with a mean age of 80 y.o. (SD = 8), 739 women (61%). CICSI was found in 53 patients (4.3%, 95% CI 3.2-5.4). This is similar to the rate found in patients 65 years and older in the NEXUS population (4.6%) and the CCR population (6.0%). The mechanism of injury was a minor trauma for 716 patients (59%). Of those, 24 patients (3.4%, 95% CI 2.1-4.7) had CICSI. The rate increased after 85 y.o in both the overall population (3.4% vs 6.4%) and the minor trauma subgroup (2.6% vs 4.4%). Conclusion: The subgroup of patients 65-84 y.o. with a minor trauma had the lower rate of cervical spine injury (2.6%). In a lot of prehospital systems, those patients are not systematically immobilised for transport. It will be interesting to review the files of all patients with CICSI to identify any possible case that would have been missed without the age criteria.