Abstract
The incidence of rib fractures in older adults has increased in recent years, and surgical stabilization of rib fractures （SSRF） has emerged as a new treatment strategy for such patients. Therefore, we conducted this study to clarify the safety of SSRF by examining the outcomes of older patients （≥80 years of age） who received this therapy. This retrospective cohort study was based on the medical records of 39 patients who underwent SSRF at our hospital between April 2017 and August 2023. The patient characteristics, surgery-related characteristics, and treatment outcomes were compared between older （≥80 years of age） and younger adults （＜80 years of age）.
Of the 39 patients, 29 were in the younger adult group and 10 were in the older group. No significant differences in surgery-related characteristics or treatment outcomes （postoperative complications, mortality, ventilator management days, ICU stay, or hospital stay） were found between the two groups. Postoperative complications did not increase in the patients at the authors’ facility and under our indications, even among the older patients, whose postoperative outcomes were comparable to those of the younger patients with more severe conditions.
