“AltersTraumaRegister DGU” is launched

22.01.2016 10:54

The German Society for Trauma Surgery (DGU) is launching the “AltersTraumaRegister DGU” (ATR-DGU) for regular operations after a successful pilot phase. The registry records data from the care of geriatric patients after a femoral fracture near the hip joint, such as a fracture of the femoral neck. Participation in the ATR-DGU is mandatory for DGU geriatric trauma centers.

The “AltersTraumaRegister DGU” collects quality-relevant data from care. The recording is based on an internationally coordinated data set. It was developed by DGU experts in collaboration with the “Fragility Fracture Network” (FFN) and draws on experiences with the British “National Hip Fracture Database” and the “Australian and New Zealand Hip Fracture Registry”. This means that the German trauma surgeons use a comparable data set as the doctors from England or Australia. For the first time, a comparison with international treatment results in the sense of a benchmark is possible.

The data obtained from the register would also be used for quality reports and are intended to provide answers to scientific questions about avoiding errors, increasing patient safety and improving treatment results.

In Germany there are 720,000 bone fractures every year in people with age-related bone fragility, the so-called osteoporosis, according to a study by Friess et al. proven. Every year, over 140,000 patients over the age of 65 suffer a femur fracture - making it one of the ten most common diagnoses in German hospitals. “For women over 85, a fracture of the femoral neck is now the most common reason for hospitalization,” says Professor Ulrich Liener, head of the Geriatric Traumatology Working Group at the DGU. Often with serious consequences: “In the first year after a broken femur in old age, mortality is around 25 percent. Many patients lose their ability to live independently,” says Liener.

Due to demographic change, trauma surgeons expect age-related bone fractures in acute care to double or triple by 2030. This is not only associated with enormous costs for the healthcare system, but also represents a major challenge for those who have fallen and the doctors. Most of the very old people suffer from numerous age-specific comorbidities such as diabetes.

In order to optimally treat older people after an accident, the DGU developed guidelines and published them in 2014 Criteria catalog “AltersTraumaZentrum DGU" published. The focus is on a multi-professional approach: it ensures that the injured person is cared for by trauma surgeons and at the same time by geriatricians. This makes it possible to provide patients with better care and avoid problems during the healing process, so that they can regain their mobility as quickly and permanently as possible.

Accident clinics that meet the structural and content requirements described in the catalog of criteria can qualify as “Geriatric Trauma Center DGU” get certified.
There are now 30 certified DGU Geriatric Trauma Centers nationwide, where fracture care takes into account coordinated age-specific treatment processes. Over 130 accident clinics have already applied for certification.

The “AltersTraumaRegister DGU” is run by the AUC – Academy for Accident Surgery GmbH implemented on behalf of the DGU.

The first results of the quality initiative “AltersTraumaZentrum DGU” will be published on January 22, 2016 under the title “Geriatric Trauma Centers from the idea to implementation – What has been achieved?” in the specialist journal “The Trauma Surgeon”.