Table 1.
Patient characteristics and outcomes
| Characteristic | Total (n=260) | Surgery group (n=98) | Nonsurgery group (n=162) | P-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age (yr) | 53.8±17.4 | 53.7±16.7 | 53.9±17.9 | 0.938 |
| Sex | 0.264 | |||
| Male | 182 (70.0) | 73 (74.5) | 109 (67.3) | |
| Female | 78 (30.0) | 25 (25.5) | 53 (32.7) | |
| Injury mechanism | 0.918 | |||
| Motor vehicle accident | 164 (63.1) | 63 (64.3) | 101 (62.3) | |
| Fall | 67 (25.8) | 24 (24.5) | 43 (26.5) | |
| Crushing injury | 24 (9.2) | 10 (10.2) | 14 (8.6) | |
| Penetrating injury | 2 (0.8) | 0 | 2 (1.2) | |
| Unknown | 3 (1.2) | 1 (1.0) | 2 (1.2) | |
| Injury Severity Score | 21.5±11.9 | 21.5±13.0 | 21.4±11.2 | 0.977 |
| Mild (<9) | 33 (12.7) | 14 (14.3) | 19 (11.7) | 0.828 |
| Moderate (9–15) | 49 (18.8) | 18 (18.4) | 31 (19.1) | |
| Severe (16–25) | 98 (37.7) | 34 (34.7) | 64 (39.5) | |
| Profound (>25) | 80 (30.8) | 32 (32.7) | 48 (29.6) | |
| Flail chest | 96 (36.9) | 63 (64.3) | 33 (20.4) | <0.001 |
| With rib fracture | 93 (35.8) | 60 (61.2) | 33 (18.5) | |
| Without rib fracture | 3 (1.2) | 3 (3.1) | 0 | |
| Chest (AIS ≥3) | 188 (72.3) | 75 (76.5) | 113 (69.8) | 0.256 |
| Intrathoracic injury | ||||
| Heart, aorta, or other artery | 34 (13.1) | 20 (20.4) | 14 (8.6) | 0.008 |
| Lung contusion | 126 (48.5) | 46 (46.9) | 80 (49.4) | 0.798 |
| Hemothorax and/or pneumothorax | 137 (52.7) | 66 (67.3) | 71 (43.8) | 0.001 |
| Retrosternal hematoma | 113 (43.5) | 51 (52.0) | 62 (38.3) | 0.039 |
| Extrathoracic injury (AIS ≥3) | ||||
| Head and neck | 77 (29.6) | 22 (22.4) | 55 (34.0) | 0.051 |
| Face | 1 (0.4) | 0 | 1 (0.6) | >0.999 |
| Abdomen | 70 (26.9) | 25 (25.5) | 45 (27.8) | 0.773 |
| Extremity | 49 (18.8) | 19 (19.4) | 30 (18.5) | 0.871 |
| Outcome | ||||
| ICU stay (day) | 6.6 (2.0–21.3) | 8.6 (3.3–23.6) | 5.4 (1.6–18.0) | 0.065 |
| Hospital stay (day) | 23.0 (12.0–48.2) | 27.5 (17.0–58.0) | 20.0 (9.3–43.8) | 0.001 |
| In-hospital mortality | 13 (5.0) | 2 (2.0) | 11 (6.8) | 0.140 |
| Pneumonia | 71 (27.3) | 32 (32.7) | 39 (24.1) | 0.152 |
Values are presented as mean±standard deviation, number (%), or median (interquartile range).
AIS, Abbreviated Injury Scale; ICU, intensive care unit.