Mortality associated with traumatic injuries in the elderly: A population based study

Abstract Elderly trauma is increasing in incidence and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The primary objective of the study was to identify factors associated with survival or mortality in the elderly following trauma. The secondary objective was to compare the epidemiology of trauma in the elderly with younger patients. A retrospective analysis was performed of data that was obtained from a prospectively collected multi-centre trauma database maintained by The Scottish Trauma Audit Group (STAG) containing details of 52,887 trauma patients admitted to 25 participating Scottish Hospitals over an 11-year period. Elderly trauma patients (aged >80 years) were separately analyzed and compared to younger trauma patients (aged 13–80). Of 52,887 trauma patients identified, 4791 were elderly (9.1%). Elderly patients had a higher absolute mortality rate following traumatic injury (9.9% versus 4%, p