Summary Body mass index (BMI) and mortality in old adults from the general population have been related in a U‐shaped or J‐shaped curve. However, limited information is available for elderly nursing home populations, particularly about specific cause of death. A systematic PubMed/EMBASE/CINAHL/SCOPUS search until 31 May 2014 without language restrictions was conducted. As no published study reported mortality in standard BMI groups (<18.5, 18.5–24.9, 25–29.9, ≥30 kg/m2), the most adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) according to a pre‐defined list of covariates were obtained from authors and pooled by random‐effect model across each BMI category. Out of 342 hits, 20 studies including 19,538 older nursing home residents with 5,223 deaths during a median of 2 years of follow‐up were meta‐analysed. Compared with normal weight, all‐cause mortality HRs were 1.41 (95% CI = 1.26–1.58) for underweight, 0.85 (95% CI = 0.73–0.99) for overweight and 0.74 (95% CI = 0.57–0.96) for obesity. Underweight was a risk factor for higher mortality caused by infections (HR = 1.65 [95% CI = 1.13–2.40]). RR results corroborated primary HR results, with additionally lower infection‐related mortality in overweight and obese than in normal‐weight individuals. Like in the general population, underweight is a risk factor for mortality in old nursing home residents. However, uniquely, not only overweight but also obesity is protective, which has relevant nutritional goal implications in this population/setting.

No abstract

We retrospectively analysed 106 consecutive traumatic humeral shaft fractures over a five-year period. The mechanism of injury, age, gender, fracture types, associated injury and the presence of injury to the radial nerve were reviewed. The incidence was about 10 per 100,000 per year; most were closed fractures in young males which had been sustained as a result of traffic accidents. The age-gender distribution was characterised by gradually increased incidence from the fifth decade in women, while it reached a peak at the third decade and decreased after the fifth decade in men. The results revealed different epidemiological features from previous studies. The epidemiology differs between ethnicity and country, and updating the epidemiological features of humeral shaft fractures may provide information for appropriate treatment programmes. This study documents the epidemiology of humeral shaft fracture in Taiwan, probably for the first time in this Asian community.