• Nina P Tamirisa, Abhishek D Parmar, Gabriela M Vargas, Hemalkumar B Mehta, E Molly Kilbane, Bruce L Hall, Henry A Pitt, and Taylor S Riall.
• *Department of Surgery, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX †Department of Surgery, The University of California, San Francisco-East Bay, Oakland, CA ‡Department of Surgery, Indiana University Health, Indianapolis, IN §Department of Surgery, School of Medicine, Washington University and Barnes Jewish Hospital, St Louis, MO ¶John Cochran Veterans Affairs Medical Center, St Louis, MO ||Olin Business School and the Center for Health Policy at Washington University in St Louis, St Louis, MO **BJC Healthcare, St Louis, MO ††Department of Surgery, Temple University Health System, Philadelphia, PA.
• Ann. Surg. 2016 Feb 1; 263 (2): 385-91.

BackgroundFor pancreatectomy patients, mortality increases with increasing age. Our study evaluated the relative contribution of overall postoperative complications and failure to rescue rates on the observed increased mortality in older patients undergoing pancreatic resection at specialized centers.MethodsWe identified 2694 patients who underwent pancreatic resection from the American College of Surgeons' National Surgical Quality Improvement Pancreatectomy Demonstration Project at 37 high-volume centers. Overall morbidity and in-hospital mortality were determined in patients younger than 80 years (N = 2496) and 80 years or older (N = 198). Failure to rescue was the number of deaths in patients with complications divided by the total number of patients with postoperative complications.ResultsNo significant differences were observed between patients younger than 80 years and those 80 years or older in the rates of overall complications (41.4% vs 39.4%, P = 0.58). In-hospital mortality increased in patients 80 years or older compared to patients younger than 80 years (3.0% vs 1.1%, P = 0.02). Failures to rescue rates were higher in patients 80 years or older (7.7% vs 2.7%, P = 0.01). Across 37 high-volume centers, unadjusted complication rates ranged from 25.0% to 72.2% and failure to rescue rates ranged from 0.0% to 25.0%. Among patients with postoperative complications, comorbidities associated with failure to rescue were ascites, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and diabetes. Complications associated with failure to rescue included acute renal failure, septic shock, and postoperative pulmonary complications.ConclusionsIn experienced hands, the rates of complications after pancreatectomy in patients 80 years or older compared to patients younger than 80 years were similar. However, when complications occurred, older patients were more likely to die. Interventions to identify and aggressively treat complications are necessary to decrease mortality in vulnerable older patients.

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