The American surgeon
-
The American surgeon · Jul 2012
Comparative StudyLocoregional versus general anesthesia for open inguinal herniorrhaphy: a National Surgical Quality Improvement Program analysis.
Our objective was to study outcomes associated with open inguinal herniorrhaphy performed under locoregional (LR) versus general anesthesia (GA). National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) data from 2005 to 2009 was queried to capture patients undergoing initial unilateral inguinal herniorrhaphy. We excluded patients with incarcerated/strangulated hernia or those undergoing a concomitant procedure. ⋯ Multivariate analyses demonstrated that LR anesthetic is associated with shorter anesthetic and operative times and a lower hospital admission rate. Comparison using a propensity-matched cohort for undergoing LR anesthesia confirms that these patients had significantly shorter anesthesia (32 vs 38 min, P < 0.0001) and operative times (53.3 vs 57.2 min, P < 0.0001), as well as a significantly reduced rate of postoperative admission (5.9% vs 10.9%, P < 0.0001) and 30-day morbidity (0.9% vs 1.3%, P < 0.05). Our analysis of NSQIP suggests that, compared with general anesthesia, the locoregional technique is associated with shorter anesthesia and operative times, reduced need for postoperative hospital admission, and a small but significant reduction in postoperative morbidity.
-
The American surgeon · Jul 2012
Clinical TrialToward prospective identification of high-risk surgical patients.
The purpose of this study was to explore the feasibility of prospectively identifying patients at high risk for surgical complications using automatable methods focused on patient characteristics. We used data from the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative (60,411 elective surgeries) performed between 2003 and 2008. Regression models for postoperative mortality, overall morbidity, cardiac, thromboembolic, pulmonary, renal, and surgical site infection complications were developed using preoperative patient and planned procedure data. ⋯ Cross-validation results were consistent and only slightly attenuated when predictors were restricted to patient characteristics alone. Adverse postoperative events are concentrated among patients identifiable preoperatively as high risk. Preoperative risk assessment could allow for efficient interventions targeted to high-risk patients.
-
The American surgeon · Jul 2012
Faculty clinical quality goals drive improvement in University HealthSystem Consortium outcome measures.
Mortality, length of stay (LOS), patient safety indicators (PSIs), and hospital-acquired conditions (HACs) are routinely reported by the University HealthSystem Consortium (UHC) to measure quality at academic health centers. We hypothesized that a clinical quality measurable goal assigned to individual faculty members would decrease UHC measures of mortality, LOS, PSIs, and HACs. For academic year (AY) 2010-2011, faculty members received a clinical quality goal related to mortality, LOS, PSIs, and HACs. ⋯ Seven (17.9%) of 39 faculty had quality grades that were average or below. Quality goals assigned to individual faculty members are associated with decreased average LOS index, PSIs, and HACs. Focused, relevant quality assignments that are tied to compensation improve patient safety and outcomes.
-
The American surgeon · Jul 2012
Use of the medical Ethics Consultation Service in a busy Level I trauma center: impact on decision-making and patient care.
The purposes of this study were to assess reasons for consultation of the Ethics Consultation Service for trauma patients and how consultations impacted care. We conducted a review of ethics consultations at a Level I trauma center from 2001 to 2010. Data included patient demographics, etiology of injury, and timing/type of the consult, categorized as: shared decision-making, end-of-life, privacy and confidentiality, resource allocation, and professionalism. ⋯ Average time to consultation was 25 days. Shared decision-making consults occurred much earlier than end-of-life consults as evidenced by a lower consult day/LOS ratio (consult day/LOS = 0.36 ± 0.3 vs 0.77 ± 0.3, P = 0.0001). Conclusions consisted of: 1) ethics consultation on trauma patients are most commonly for end-of-life and shared decision-making issues; 2) most ethics consultations occur while patients are in the intensive care unit; and 3) earlier ethics consultations are likely to be for shared decision-making issues.
-
Cervical spine (CS) injury occurs in 1 to 3 per cent of blunt trauma patients. The goal of this study is to evaluate the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as an adjunct to CS computed tomography (CT) in the presence of persistent pain with a normal physical examination or obtundation. A retrospective chart review was performed on 389 blunt trauma patients undergoing both CS CT and MRI between 2007 and 2010. ⋯ No obtunded patient had CS instability or needed operative intervention. A localizing physical examination in conjunction with normal CS CT safely precludes a CS injury requiring cervical fixation. MRI does not add substantially to this decision-making and the cervical collar can be safely removed.