Auditing 655 fatalities with pelvic fractures by autopsy as a basis to evaluate trauma care

BACKGROUND: To determine the role of pelvic fractures in auditing mortality resulting from trauma. STUDY DESIGN: This retrospective case-control study based on autopsy-evaluated circumstances of the deaths of patients with pelvic fractures. RESULTS: Of 2,583 patients injured in motor-vehicle collisions, 655 (25.4%) constituted the pelvic fracture (PFx) group, and 1,928 (74.6%) constituted the control group. One-third of the PFx group's fatalities had an Injury Severity Score (ISS) of 75 and were not preventable. The PFx group had a substantially higher median ISS than the control group (50 versus 34; p < 0.0001). Four hundred fifty-four patients (69.3%) in the PFx group with ISS 16 to 74 had substantially higher rates of associated injuries. Nearly half of the PFx group patients with ISS