Using a weighted risk index, the highest-risk outpatient surgery patients have an almost 20-fold increase in risk of venous thromboembolism requiring therapy, according to a study in the Annals of Surgery reported in Doctors Lounge.
Christopher J. Pannucci, MD, from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and colleagues looked at data from a study using the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database. Adult outpatient surgery or surgery with subsequent 23-hour observation patients were included.
The researchers found that, overall, 30-day incidence of VTE was 0.15 percent. Risk factors that independently increased the risk of VTE were currently pregnancy, active cancer, age 41 to 59 years, age more than 60 years, body mass index over 40 kg, operative time over 120 minutes and arthroscopic surgery.
There was a 20-fold difference in 30-day VTE between lowest- and highest-risk patients using a weighted risk index.
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Christopher J. Pannucci, MD, from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and colleagues looked at data from a study using the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database. Adult outpatient surgery or surgery with subsequent 23-hour observation patients were included.
The researchers found that, overall, 30-day incidence of VTE was 0.15 percent. Risk factors that independently increased the risk of VTE were currently pregnancy, active cancer, age 41 to 59 years, age more than 60 years, body mass index over 40 kg, operative time over 120 minutes and arthroscopic surgery.
There was a 20-fold difference in 30-day VTE between lowest- and highest-risk patients using a weighted risk index.
Related Articles on Quality:
Educational Videos Before Surgery May Boost Patient Satisfaction
IOM Calls on FDA to Improve Safety of Approved Drugs
Study Finds No Link Between Physician Incentives and Ambulatory Quality Measures
