Secular trends in the incidence of fracture hospitalization between 2000 and 2015 among the middle-aged and elderly persons in Taiwan: A nationwide register-based cohort study.

Fractures are a common reason for hospital admissions. However, regional and short-term studies show a varying incidence rate (IR) of fractures, and most of the surveys were conducted from only a few medical centers. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the epidemiological data of fracture hospitalizations of middle-aged and elderly persons in Taiwan between 2000 and 2015. Data from fractures occurring between 2000 and 2015 were obtained from the National Health Insurance Research Database in Taiwan for this study. The IR of fracture admission in patients, aged 40 years or older at the time of admission and first-time diagnosed with a fracture following admission, was calculated. We found that the IR of the fracture hospitalizations declined considerably from 95.70 per 10,000 person-years in 2000, to 68.48 per 10,000 person-years in 2015. The three most common fracture hospitalizations accounting for more than 50% of all fractures were fractures of the femur/hip, radius or ulna, and vertebral column. The IR of fracture hospitalization increased with age and was found to be higher in women than in men. The most common cause of fracture hospitalization for men and patients under 65 years of age was traffic accidents. In contrast, falls were the most frequent causes of fracture hospitalization for women and patients over 65 years of age. The present study furnishes an updated picture of the incidence of fracture hospitalization over a 16-year period among middle-aged and elderly persons in Taiwan. • An updated picture of the 16-year incidence of fracture hospitalizations in the middle-aged and elderly persons was furnished. • The incidence rate of fracture hospitalizations increased with age and in women. • Fractures of the femur/hip, vertebral column, radius or ulna, and humerus accounted for the majority of fracture hospitalizations. • The most common cause of fracture hospitalizations for men and patients under 65 years of age was traffic accidents; falls were the most frequent causes of fracture hospitalizations for women and patients over 65 years of age. • Bone location and etiology distribution analyses give new perspectives for incidence rate of fracture hospitalizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]