Publications by authors named "Tim Kobes"

Objective: What is the effect of surgical or conservative treatment on the in-hospital outcomes of patients with combined fractures of the clavicle and ribs?

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Setting: Two level-1 trauma centers and academic teaching hospitals in Boston, Massachusetts.

Patients: All adult patients with a clavicle fracture and ≥3 rib fractures admitted from 2016 to 2021.

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Article Synopsis
  • This study aimed to validate a prediction model for early identification of patients at risk for nosocomial pneumonia in US level-1 trauma centers, which could enhance patient survival and reduce healthcare costs.
  • The research analyzed data from over 900,000 trauma patients, focusing on incidents of total nosocomial pneumonia and ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) over two time periods.
  • Results showed that the Croce model effectively discriminates patients at risk for pneumonia, suggesting its implementation in clinical practice could improve preventative strategies for those most vulnerable.*
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Objectives: Metastatic bone disease is estimated to develop in up to 17% of patients with melanoma, compromising skeleton integrity resulting in skeletal-related events (SREs), which impair quality of life and reduce survival. The objective of the study was to investigate (1) the proportion of melanoma patients developing SREs following diagnosis of bone metastasis and (2) the predictors for SREs in this patient cohort.

Methods: Four hundred and eighty-one patients with bone metastatic melanoma from two tertiary centers in the United States from 2008 to 2018 were included.

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Purpose: What are reported definitions of HAP in trauma patient research?

Methods: A systematic review was performed using the PubMed/MEDLINE database. We included all English, Dutch, and German original research papers in adult trauma patients reporting diagnostic criteria for hospital-acquired pneumonia diagnosis. The risk of bias was assessed using the MINORS criteria.

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Background: Chest tubes are commonly placed in trauma care to treat life-threatening intrathoracic injuries by evacuating blood or air from the pleural cavity. Currently, it is common practice to routinely obtain chest radiographs between 1 to 8 hours after chest tube removal, while the necessity of it has been questioned. This study describes the "ins-and-outs" of chest tubes and evaluates the value of routine postremoval chest radiography in nonventilated trauma patients.

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Purpose: The present study aims to assess whether CT-derived muscle mass, muscle density, and visceral fat mass are associated with in-hospital complications and clinical outcome in level-1 trauma patients.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted on adult patients admitted to the University Medical Center Utrecht following a trauma between January 1 and December 31, 2017. Trauma patients aged 16 years or older without severe neurological injuries, who underwent a CT that included the abdomen within 7 days of admission, were included.

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Background: Aging, inactivity, and malnutrition are risk factors for adverse in-hospital outcomes and can manifest in bone loss. Use of bone mineral density (BMD) as an objective marker might improve early identification of patients at risk for complications.

Aim: To assess the association of computed tomography (CT) determined BMD values of the first lumbar vertebra with in-hospital complications and outcomes in trauma patients.

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Background: In-hospital complications after trauma may result in prolonged stays, higher costs, and adverse functional outcomes. Among reported risk factors for complications are pre-existing cardiopulmonary comorbidities. Objective and quick evaluation of cardiovascular risk would be beneficial for risk assessment in trauma patients.

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Opportunistic screening for bone mineral density (BMD) of the first lumbar vertebra (L1) using computed tomography (CT) is increasingly used to identify patients at risk for osteoporosis. An extensive study in the United States has reported sex-specific normative values of CT-based BMD across all ages. The current study aims to validate North American reference values of CT-based bone mineral density in a Dutch population of level-1 trauma patients.

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