Reduced rates of pneumonia after implementation of an electronic checklist for the management of patients with multiple rib fractures at a Level One Trauma Center

Background

Traumatic rib fractures are associated with increased morbidity and mortality, with complications including pneumothorax, difficult to control pain, and pneumonia. Use of a bundled, multi-disciplinary approach to the care of patients with multiple rib fractures has been shown to reduce morbidity and mortality. In this study, we investigate the implementation of a checklist for the multidisciplinary management of patients with multiple rib fractures who present to an urban, level 1 trauma center and safety-net hospital.

Study design

This was a single-institution, retrospective cohort study to assess changes in treatment characteristics and patient outcomes before and after implementation of a comprehensive checklist for the management of high-risk patients with three or more traumatic rib fractures at a level-one trauma center. The primary outcome was pneumonia rates with secondary outcomes of mechanical ventilation rates and mechanical ventilation days, ICU length of stay, mortality, and non-opioid and opioid consumption (morphine milligram equivalents).

Results

A total of 104 patients met study eligibility, including 51 patients who presented during the pre-protocol period and 53 patients who received care after implementation. We observed that the checklist was utilized and reviewed in 83% of patients during the post-protocol period. Pneumonia rates were significantly lower in the post-protocol group (35.3% vs 15.1%, p = 0.017). There was no difference in the number of patients who required mechanical ventilation or the duration of mechanical ventilation. On unadjusted analysis, median overall length of stay (11.5 days vs 13 days, p = 0.71), median ICU stay (4 days vs 5 days, p = 0.18), and rate of in-hospital mortality (11.8% vs 7.6%, p = 0.47) was not different between the two time periods.

Conclusion

In patients with chest wall trauma and associated rib fractures, implementation of a standardized, multidisciplinary checklist to ensure utilization of multimodal analgesia and non-pharmacological interventions was associated with decreased pneumonia rates at our institution.