Assessment of the Risk Analysis Index for Prediction of Mortality, Major Complications, and Length of Stay in Patients who Underwent Vascular Surgery

Clinical Outcomes of 5000 IU Heparin Versus Activated Clotting Time-Guided Heparinization During Noncardiac Arterial Procedures: A Propensity Score Matched Analysis

PURPOSE

Previous studies have shown that activated clotting time (ACT)-guided heparinization leads to better anticoagulation levels during noncardiac arterial procedures (NCAP) than a standardized bolus of 5000 IU. Better anticoagulation should potentially result in lower incidence of thrombo-embolic complications (TEC). Comparative investigations on clinical outcomes of these heparinization strategies are scarce. This study investigated clinical outcomes of ACT-guided heparinization with a starting dose of 100 IU/kg in comparison with a single standardized bolus of 5000 IU heparin during NCAP.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Analysis from a prospectively collected database of patients undergoing NCAP in 2 vascular centers was performed. Patients receiving ACT-guided heparinization were matched 1:1 with patients receiving 5000 IU heparin using propensity score matching (PSM). Primary outcomes were TEC, bleeding complications, and mortality within 30 days of procedure or during the same admission.

RESULTS

A total of 759 patients (5000 IU heparin: 213 patients, ACT-guided heparinization: 546 patients) were included. Propensity score matching resulted in 209 patients in each treatment group. After PSM, the groups were comparable, with the exception of a higher prevalence of peripheral arterial disease in the ACT-guided heparinization group (103 patients, 49% vs 82 patients, 39%, p=0.039). The target ACT (>200 seconds) was reached in 198 patients (95%) of the ACT-guided group versus 71 patients (34%) of the 5000 IU group (p<0.001), indicating successful execution of the ACT-guided protocol. Incidence of TEC (13 patients, 6.2% vs 10 patients, 4.8%, p=0.52), mortality (3 patients, 1.4% vs 0 patients, p=0.25), and bleeding complications (32 patients, 15% vs 25 patients, 12%, p=0.32) did not differ between patients receiving ACT-guided heparinization and 5000 IU heparin. Protamine was administered in 118 patients (57%) in the ACT group versus 11 patients (5.3%) in the 5000 IU group (p<0.001), but did not influence incidence of TEC (17 patients, 5.9% vs 6 patients, 4.7%, p=0.61) or bleeding complications (34 patients, 12% vs 22 patients, 17%, p=0.14).

CONCLUSION

No difference in TEC, bleeding complications, or mortality was found between ACT-guided heparinization and a single bolus of 5000 IU heparin during NCAP.

CLINICAL IMPACT

Previous studies have shown that activated clotting time (ACT)-guided heparinization leads to better anticoagulation levels during non-cardiac arterial procedures (NCAP) then a standardized bolus of 5000 IU. Comparative investigations on clinical outcomes are scarce. This study focussed on clinical outcomes of both protocols in NCAP in a propensity score matched cohort. Thrombo-embolic complications (TEC), bleeding complications and mortality within 30 days after NCAP or during the same admission were comparable between groups. Future studies should focus on optimizing ACT-guided protocols, specifically in patients with a high risk of TEC and bleeding complications.

Comparison of a risk calculator with frailty indices in patients undergoing lung cancer resection

INTRODUCTION

Perioperative risk stratification is an essential component of preoperative planning for cancer surgery. While frailty has gained attention for its utility in risk stratification, no studies have directly compared it to existing risk calculators. Therefore, the objective of this study was to compare the risk stratification of the American College of Surgeons Surgical Risk Calculator (ACS-SRC), the Revised Risk Analysis Index (RAI-rev), and the Modified Frailty Index (5-mFI). The primary outcomes were 30-day postoperative morbidity, 30-day postoperative mortality, unplanned readmission, unplanned reoperation, and discharge disposition other-than-home.

METHODS

Patients undergoing anatomic lung resection for primary, non-small cell lung cancer were identified within the American College of Surgeons National Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) database. The ACS-SRC, RAI-rev, and 5-mFI tools were used to predict adverse postoperative events. Tools were compared for discrimination in the primary outcomes.

RESULTS

9663 patients undergoing anatomic lung resection for cancer between 2012 and 2014 were included. The cohort was 53.1% female. Median age at diagnosis was 67 (interquartile range = 59-74) years. Cardiothoracic surgeons performed 89% and general surgeons performed 11.0% of the operations. Perioperative morbidity and mortality rates were 10.9% (n = 1048) and 1.6% (n = 158). Rates of 30-day postoperative unplanned readmission and reoperation were 7.5% (n = 725) and 4.8% (n = 468). The ACS-SRC had the highest discrimination for all measured outcomes, as measured by the area under the receiver operating curve (AUC) and corresponding confidence interval (95% confidence interval [CI]). This included perioperative mortality (AUC = 0.74, 95% CI = 0.71-0.78), compared to RAI-rev (AUC = 0.66, 95% CI = 0.62-0.69) and 5-mFI (AUC = 0.61, 95% CI = 0.57-0.65; p < 0.001). The RAI-rev and 5-mFI had similar discrimination for all measured outcomes.

CONCLUSION

ACS-SRC was the perioperative risk stratification tool with the highest predictive discrimination for adverse, 30-day, postoperative events for patients with cancer treated with anatomic lung resection.

Markers of optimal medical therapy are associated with improved limb outcomes after elective revascularization for intermittent claudication

BACKGROUND

Optimal medical therapy (OMT) is a modifiable factor that decreases mortality and cardiovascular events in patients with severe peripheral arterial disease. We hypothesized that preintervention OMT would be associated with improved 1-year reintervention and major adverse limb event (MALE) rates after elective endovascular revascularization for intermittent claudication (IC).

METHODS

Using the Vascular Quality Initiative (2010-2020), we identified patients with IC undergoing elective endovascular, hybrid, and open surgical interventions. Preoperative antiplatelet, statin, and nonsmoking status defined OMT components and created three groups: complete (all components), partial (1-2 components), and no OMT. The primary outcome was 1-year reintervention. Secondary outcomes included MALE and factors associated with OMT usage. Multivariable logistic regression generated adjusted odds ratios (aOR).

RESULTS

There were 39,088 patients (14,907 [38.1%] complete, 22,054 [56.4%)] partial, 2127 [5.4%] no OMT) who met our criteria. Patients with any OMT were more frequently older with more cardiovascular diseases and diabetes (P < .0001). Patients without OMT were more likely to be Black or with Medicare or Medicaid (P < .05). Observed 1-year reintervention (5.3% complete OMT, 6.1% partial OMT, 8.3% no OMT; P < .001) and MALE (5.6% complete OMT, 6.3% partial OMT, 8.8% no OMT; P < .001) were decreased by partial or complete OMT compared with no OMT. Complete OMT significantly decreased the adjusted odds of reintervention and MALE by 28% (aOR, 0.72, 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 0.59-0.88) and 30% (aOR, 0.70; 95% CI, 0.58-0.85), respectively, compared with no OMT. Partial OMT decrease the adjusted odds of reintervention and MALE by 24% (aOR, 0.76; 95% CI, 0.63-0.92) and 26% (aOR, 0.74; 95% CI, 0.62-0.89), respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Preintervention OMT is an underused, modifiable risk factor associated with improved 1-year reintervention and MALE. Vascular surgeons are uniquely positioned to initiate and maintain OMT in patients with IC before revascularization to optimize patient outcomes.

Accuracy of frailty instruments in predicting outcomes following perioperative cardiac arrest

BACKGROUND

Frailty is associated with increased 30-day mortality and non-home discharge following perioperative cardiac arrest. We estimated the predictive accuracy of frailty when added to baseline risk prediction models.

METHODS

In this retrospective cohort study using 2015-2020 NSQIP data for 3048 patients aged 50+ undergoing non-cardiac surgery and resuscitation on post-operative day 0 (i.e., intraoperatively or postoperatively on the day of surgery), baseline models including age, sex, ASA physical status, preoperative sepsis or septic shock, and emergent surgery were compared to models that added frailty indices, either RAI or mFI-5, to predict 30-day mortality and non-home discharge. Predictive accuracy was characterized by area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC-ROC), integrated calibration index (ICI), and continuous net reclassification index (NRI).

RESULTS

1786 patients (58.6%) died in the study cohort within 30 days, and 38.6% of eligible patients experienced non-home discharge. The baseline model showed good discrimination (AUC-ROC 0.77 for 30-day mortality and 0.74 for non-home discharge). AUC-ROC and ICI did not significantly change after adding frailty for 30-day mortality or non-home discharge. Adding RAI significantly improved NRI for 30-day mortality and non-home discharge; however, the magnitude was small and difficult to interpret, given other results including false positive and negative rates showing no difference in predictive accuracy.

CONCLUSIONS

Incorporating frailty did not significantly improve predictive accuracy of models for 30-day mortality and non-home discharge following perioperative resuscitation. Thus, demonstrated associations between frailty and outcomes of perioperative resuscitation may not translate into improved predictive accuracy. When engaging patients in shared decision-making regarding do-not-resuscitate orders perioperatively, providers should acknowledge uncertainty in anticipating resuscitation outcomes.

Frailty Predicts 30-day mortality following major complications in neurosurgery patients: The risk analysis index has superior discrimination compared to modified frailty index-5 and increasing patient age

Background

Postoperative complications after cranial or spine surgery are prevalent, and frailty can be a key contributing patient factor. Therefore, we evaluated frailty's impact on 30-day mortality. We compared the discrimination for risk analysis index (RAI), modified frailty index-5 (mFI-5) and increasing patient age for predicting 30-day mortality.

Methods

Patients with major complications following neurosurgery procedures between 2012- 2020 in the ACS-NSQIP database were included. We employed receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and examined discrimination thresholds for RAI, mFI-5, and increasing patient age for 30-day mortality. Independent relationships were examined using multivariable analysis.

Results

There were 19,096 patients included in the study and in the ROC analysis for 30-day mortality, RAI showed superior discriminant validity threshold C-statistic 0.655 (95% CI: 0.644-0.666), compared to mFI-5 C-statistic 0.570 (95% CI 0.559-0.581), and increasing patient age C-statistic 0.607 (95% CI 0.595-0.619). When the patient population was divided into subsets based on the procedures type (spinal, cranial or other), spine procedures had the highest discriminant validity threshold for RAI (Cstatistic 0.717). Furthermore, there was a frailty risk tier dose response relationship with 30-day mortalityy (p<0.001).

Conclusion

When a major complication arises after neurosurgical procedures, frail patients have a higher likelihood of dying within 30 days than their non-frail counterparts. The RAI demonstrated a higher discriminant validity threshold than mFI-5 and increasing patient age, making it a more clinically relevant tool for identifying and stratifying patients by frailty risk tiers. These findings highlight the importance of initiatives geared toward optimizing frail patients, to mitigate long-term disability.

2024 ACC/AHA/AACVPR/APMA/ABC/SCAI/SVM/SVN/SVS/SIR/VESS Guideline for the Management of Lower Extremity Peripheral Artery Disease: A Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Joint Committee on Clinical Practice Guidelines

AIM

The "2024 ACC/AHA/AACVPR/APMA/ABC/SCAI/SVM/SVN/SVS/SIR/VESS Guideline for the Management of Lower Extremity Peripheral Artery Disease" provides recommendations to guide clinicians in the treatment of patients with lower extremity peripheral artery disease across its multiple clinical presentation subsets (ie, asymptomatic, chronic symptomatic, chronic limb-threatening ischemia, and acute limb ischemia).

METHODS

A comprehensive literature search was conducted from October 2020 to June 2022, encompassing studies, reviews, and other evidence conducted on human subjects that was published in English from PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, CINHL Complete, and other selected databases relevant to this guideline. Additional relevant studies, published through May 2023 during the peer review process, were also considered by the writing committee and added to the evidence tables where appropriate.

STRUCTURE

Recommendations from the "2016 AHA/ACC Guideline on the Management of Patients With Lower Extremity Peripheral Artery Disease" have been updated with new evidence to guide clinicians. In addition, new recommendations addressing comprehensive care for patients with peripheral artery disease have been developed.

2024 ACC/AHA/AACVPR/APMA/ABC/SCAI/SVM/SVN/SVS/SIR/VESS Guideline for the Management of Lower Extremity Peripheral Artery Disease: A Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Joint Committee on Clinical Practice Guidelines

AIM

The "2024 ACC/AHA/AACVPR/APMA/ABC/SCAI/SVM/SVN/SVS/SIR/VESS Guideline for the Management of Lower Extremity Peripheral Artery Disease" provides recommendations to guide clinicians in the treatment of patients with lower extremity peripheral artery disease across its multiple clinical presentation subsets (ie, asymptomatic, chronic symptomatic, chronic limb-threatening ischemia, and acute limb ischemia).

METHODS

A comprehensive literature search was conducted from October 2020 to June 2022, encompassing studies, reviews, and other evidence conducted on human subjects that was published in English from PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, CINHL Complete, and other selected databases relevant to this guideline. Additional relevant studies, published through May 2023 during the peer review process, were also considered by the writing committee and added to the evidence tables where appropriate.

STRUCTURE

Recommendations from the "2016 AHA/ACC Guideline on the Management of Patients With Lower Extremity Peripheral Artery Disease" have been updated with new evidence to guide clinicians. In addition, new recommendations addressing comprehensive care for patients with peripheral artery disease have been developed.

Decision making in the frail vascular surgery patient: A scoping review

Increasing evidence highlights the adverse impact of frailty and reduced physiologic reserve on surgical outcomes. Therefore, identification of frailty is essential for older adults being evaluated for vascular surgery procedures. Numerous frailty assessment tools are available to quantify the level of frailty and assist in preoperative decision making for these older patients. This review evaluates traditional and novel frailty metrics for their scientific validation, limitations, and clinical utility in vascular surgery decision-making.

Trajectory Analysis of Health Care Utilization Before and After Major Surgery

OBJECTIVE

To characterize patterns of health care utilization before and after surgery and determine any association with preoperative frailty.

BACKGROUND

Frail patients experience worse postoperative outcomes and increased costs during the surgical encounter. Evidence is comparatively lacking for the longer-term effects of frailty on postoperative health care utilization.

METHODS

Retrospective, longitudinal cohort analysis of adult patients undergoing any elective surgical procedure after preoperative frailty assessment with the Risk Analysis Index from February 2016 to December 2020 at a large integrated health care delivery and financing system. Group-based trajectory modeling of claims data estimated distinct clusters of patients with discrete utilization trajectories. Multivariable regression predicted membership in trajectories of interest using preoperative characteristics, including frailty.

RESULTS

Among 29,067 surgical encounters, 4 distinct utilization trajectories emerged in longitudinal data from the 12 months before and after surgery. All cases exhibited a surge in utilization during the surgical month, after which most patients returned to "low" [25,473 (87.6%)], "medium" [1403 (4.8%)], or "high" [528 (1.8%)] baseline utilization states established before surgery. The fourth trajectory identified 1663 (5.7%) cases where surgery occasioned a transition from "low" utilization before surgery to "high" utilization afterward. Risk Analysis Index score alone did not effectively predict membership in this transition group, but a multivariable model with other preoperative variables was effective ( c = 0.859, max rescaled R2 = 0.264).

CONCLUSIONS

Surgery occasions the transition from low to high health care utilization for a substantial subgroup of surgical patients. Multivariable modeling may effectively discriminate this utilization trajectory, suggesting an opportunity to tailor care processes for these patients.

Percutaneous thrombectomy for acute limb ischemia is associated with equivalent limb and mortality outcomes compared with open thrombectomy

BACKGROUND

Acute limb ischemia (ALI) carries a 15% to 20% risk of combined death or amputation at 30 days and 50% to 60% at 1 year. Percutaneous mechanical thrombectomy (PT) is an emerging minimally invasive alternative to open thrombectomy (OT). However, ALI thrombectomy cases are omitted from most quality databases, limiting comparisons of limb and survival outcomes between PT and OT. Therefore, our aim was to compare in-hospital outcomes between PT and OT using the National Inpatient Sample.

METHODS

We analyzed survey-weighted National Inpatient Sample data (2015-2020) to include emergent admissions of aged adults (50+ years) with a primary diagnosis of lower extremity ALI undergoing index procedures within 2 days of hospitalization. We excluded hospitalizations with concurrent trauma or dissection diagnoses and index procedures using catheter-directed thrombolysis. Our primary outcome was composite in-hospital major amputation or death. Secondary outcomes included in-hospital major amputation, death, in-hospital reintervention (including angioplasty/stent, thrombolysis, PT, OT, or bypass), and extended length of stay (eLOS; defined as LOS >75th percentile). Adjusted odds ratios (aORs) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were generated by multivariable logistic regression, adjusting for demographics, frailty (Risk Analysis Index), secondary diagnoses including atrial fibrillation and peripheral artery disease, hospital characteristics, and index procedure data including the anatomic thrombectomy level and fasciotomy. A priori subgroup analyses were performed using interaction terms.

RESULTS

We included 23,795 survey-weighted ALI hospitalizations (mean age: 72.2 years, 50.4% female, 79.2% White, and 22.3% frail), with 7335 (30.8%) undergoing PT. Hospitalization characteristics for PT vs OT differed by atrial fibrillation (28.7% vs 36.5%, P < .0001), frequency of intervention at the femoropopliteal level (86.2% vs 88.8%, P = .009), and fasciotomy (4.8% vs 6.9%, P = .006). In total, 2530 (10.6%) underwent major amputation or died. Unadjusted (10.1% vs 10.9%, P = .43) and adjusted (aOR = 0.96 [95% CI, 0.77-1.20], P = .74) risk did not differ between the groups. PT was associated with increased odds of reintervention (aOR = 2.10 [95% CI, 1.72-2.56], P < .0001) when compared with OT, but this was not seen in the tibial subgroup (aOR = 1.31 [95% CI, 0.86-2.01], P = .21, Pinteraction < .0001). Further, 79.1% of PT hospitalizations undergoing reintervention were salvaged with endovascular therapy. Lastly, PT was associated with significantly decreased odds of eLOS (aOR = 0.80 [95% CI, 0.69-0.94], P = .005).

CONCLUSIONS

PT was associated with comparable in-hospital limb salvage and mortality rates compared with OT. Despite an increased risk of reintervention, most PT reinterventions avoided open surgery, and PT was associated with a decreased risk of eLOS. Thus, PT may be an appropriate alternative to OT in appropriately selected patients.

Presentation Acuity and Surgical Outcomes for Patients With Health Insurance Living in Highly Deprived Neighborhoods

Importance

Insurance coverage expansion has been proposed as a solution to improving health disparities, but insurance expansion alone may be insufficient to alleviate care access barriers.

Objective

To assess the association of Area Deprivation Index (ADI) with postsurgical textbook outcomes (TO) and presentation acuity for individuals with private insurance or Medicare.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This cohort study used data from the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (2013-2019) merged with electronic health record data from 3 academic health care systems. Data were analyzed from June 2022 to August 2023.

Exposure

Living in a neighborhood with an ADI greater than 85.

Main Outcomes and Measures

TO, defined as absence of unplanned reoperations, Clavien-Dindo grade 4 complications, mortality, emergency department visits/observation stays, and readmissions, and presentation acuity, defined as having preoperative acute serious conditions (PASC) and urgent or emergent cases.

Results

Among a cohort of 29 924 patients, the mean (SD) age was 60.6 (15.6) years; 16 424 (54.9%) were female, and 13 500 (45.1) were male. A total of 14 306 patients had private insurance and 15 618 had Medicare. Patients in highly deprived neighborhoods (5536 patients [18.5%]), with an ADI greater than 85, had lower/worse odds of TO in both the private insurance group (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 0.87; 95% CI, 0.76-0.99; P = .04) and Medicare group (aOR, 0.90; 95% CI, 0.82-1.00; P = .04) and higher odds of PASC and urgent or emergent cases. The association of ADIs greater than 85 with TO lost significance after adjusting for PASC and urgent/emergent cases. Differences in the probability of TO between the lowest-risk (ADI ≤85, no PASC, and elective surgery) and highest-risk (ADI >85, PASC, and urgent/emergent surgery) scenarios stratified by frailty were highest for very frail patients (Risk Analysis Index ≥40) with differences of 40.2% and 43.1% for those with private insurance and Medicare, respectively.

Conclusions and Relevance

This study found that patients living in highly deprived neighborhoods had lower/worse odds of TO and higher presentation acuity despite having private insurance or Medicare. These findings suggest that insurance coverage expansion alone is insufficient to overcome health care disparities, possibly due to persistent barriers to preventive care and other complex causes of health inequities.

Prospective assessment of dynamic changes in frailty and its impact on early clinical outcomes following physician-modified fenestrated-branched endovascular repair of complex abdominal and thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms

INTRODUCTION

Frailty, a predictor of poor outcomes, has been widely studied as a screening tool in surgical decision-making. However, the impact of frailty on the outcomes after fenestrated-branched endovascular aortic repairs (FBEVARs) is less well established. In addition, the changes in frailty during recovery after FBEVAR are unknown. We aim to assess the impact of frailty on outcomes of high-risk patients undergoing physician-modified FBEVARs for complex abdominal and thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms, as well as the changes in frailty during follow-up.

METHODS

Consecutive patients enrolled in a single-center prospective Physician-Sponsored Investigational Device Exemption protocol (FDA# G200159) were evaluated. In addition to the baseline characteristics, frailty was assessed using the Hopkins Frailty Score (HFS) and frailty index (FI) measured by the Frailty Meter. Sarcopenia was measured by L3 total psoas muscle area (PMA). These measurements were repeated during follow-up. The follow-up HFS and FI were compared with baseline scores using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test, whereas follow-up PMA measurements were compared with the baseline using the paired t test. The association between baseline frailty and morbidity was evaluated by the Wilcoxon rank-sum test.

RESULTS

Seventy patients were analyzed in a prospective Physician-Sponsored Investigational Device Exemption study from February 9, 2021, to June 2, 2023. At baseline, HFS identified 54% of patients as not frail, 43% as intermediately frail, and 3% as frail. Technical success of FBEVAR was 94% with one in-hospital mortality. Early major adverse events were seen in 10 (14.3%) patients. No difference in baseline FI was seen between patients with early morbidity and those without. Patients who were not frail per HFS were less likely to experience early morbidity (P = .033), and there was a significantly lower baseline PMA in patients who experienced early morbidity (P = .016). At 1 month, patients experienced a significant increase in HFS and HFS category (P = .001 and P = .01) and a significant decrease in sarcopenia (mean PMA: -96 mm2, P = .005). At 6 months, HFS and HFS category as well as PMA returned toward baseline (P = .42, P = .38, and mean PMA: +4 mm2, P = .6).

CONCLUSIONS

Preoperative frailty and sarcopenia were associated with early morbidity after physician-modified FBEVAR. During follow-up, patients became more frail and sarcopenic by 1 month. Recovery from this initial decline was seen by 6 months, suggesting that frailty and sarcopenia are reversible processes rather than a unidirectional phenomenon of continued decline.

A Surgical Desirability of Outcome Ranking (DOOR) Reveals Complex Relationships Between Race/Ethnicity, Insurance Type, and Neighborhood Deprivation

OBJECTIVE

Develop an ordinal Desirability of Outcome Ranking (DOOR) for surgical outcomes to examine complex associations of Social Determinants of Health.

BACKGROUND

Studies focused on single or binary composite outcomes may not detect health disparities.

METHODS

Three health care system cohort study using NSQIP (2013-2019) linked with EHR and risk-adjusted for frailty, preoperative acute serious conditions (PASC), case status and operative stress assessing associations of multilevel Social Determinants of Health of race/ethnicity, insurance type (Private 13,957; Medicare 15,198; Medicaid 2835; Uninsured 2963) and Area Deprivation Index (ADI) on DOOR and the binary Textbook Outcomes (TO).

RESULTS

Patients living in highly deprived neighborhoods (ADI>85) had higher odds of PASC [adjusted odds ratio (aOR)=1.13, CI=1.02-1.25, P <0.001] and urgent/emergent cases (aOR=1.23, CI=1.16-1.31, P <0.001). Increased odds of higher/less desirable DOOR scores were associated with patients identifying as Black versus White and on Medicare, Medicaid or Uninsured versus Private insurance. Patients with ADI>85 had lower odds of TO (aOR=0.91, CI=0.85-0.97, P =0.006) until adjusting for insurance. In contrast, patients with ADI>85 had increased odds of higher DOOR (aOR=1.07, CI=1.01-1.14, P <0.021) after adjusting for insurance but similar odds after adjusting for PASC and urgent/emergent cases.

CONCLUSIONS

DOOR revealed complex interactions between race/ethnicity, insurance type and neighborhood deprivation. ADI>85 was associated with higher odds of worse DOOR outcomes while TO failed to capture the effect of ADI. Our results suggest that presentation acuity is a critical determinant of worse outcomes in patients in highly deprived neighborhoods and without insurance. Including risk adjustment for living in deprived neighborhoods and urgent/emergent surgeries could improve the accuracy of quality metrics.

A systematic review of frailty assessment tools used in vascular surgery research

OBJECTIVE

Frailty is common in vascular patients and is recognized for its prognostic value. In the absence of consensus, a multitude of frailty assessment tools exist. This systematic review aimed to quantify the variety in these tools and describe their content and application to inform future research and clinical practice.

METHODS

Multiple cross-disciplinary electronic literature databases were searched from inception to August 2022. Studies describing frailty assessment in a vascular surgical population were eligible. Data extraction to a validated template included patient demographics, tool content, and analysis methods. A secondary systematic search for papers describing the psychometric properties of commonly used frailty tools was then performed.

RESULTS

Screening 5358 records identified 111 eligible studies, with an aggregate population of 5,418,236 patients. Forty-three differing frailty assessment tools were identified. One-third of these failed to assess frailty as a multidomain deficit and there was a reliance on assessing function and presence of comorbidity. Substantial methodological variability in data analysis and lack of methodological description was also identified. Published psychometric assessment was available for only 4 of the 10 most commonly used frailty tools. The Clinical Frailty Scale was the most studied and demonstrates good psychometric properties within a surgical population.

CONCLUSIONS

Substantial heterogeneity in frailty assessment is demonstrated, precluding meaningful comparisons of services and data pooling. A uniform approach to assessment is required to guide future frailty research. Based on the literature, we make the following recommendations: frailty should be considered a continuous construct and the reporting of frailty tools' application needs standardized. In the absence of consensus, the Clinical Frailty Scale is a validated tool with good psychometric properties that demonstrates usefulness in vascular surgery.

A study of factors affecting the length of hospital stay (LOS) of COVID-19 patients: A qualitative evidence in Iranian hospital

BACKGROUND

The present study aimed to identify the administrators' and physicians' experiences and viewpoints about the factors affecting the length of stay (LOS) of COVID-19 patients and provide valid operational evidence.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The current study was carried out qualitatively and phenomenologically on experts, officials, and administrators of hospitals in 2021. Purposeful sampling was performed with the maximum diversity. To achieve a comprehensive view, snowball sampling was conducted. Twenty-one experts in the field of healthcare and emerging diseases participated in this study. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect the data. The study sites were universities of medical sciences and hospitals of the Ministry of Health of Iran. The interview questions included questions about the factors affecting the LOS and strategies for controlling the LOS of COVID-19 patients in infectious units. Text analysis was performed through the content analysis method in MAXQDA-10 software.

RESULTS

Based on the experts' viewpoints, several factors affected the LOS in COVID-19 patients. These factors were divided into five clinical, preclinical, economic, social, and management subcategories. The proposed solutions included policy solutions (supportive policies, development of home care services, training and culture building, and establishment of clinical guidelines) and operational solutions (drug management, promotion of equipment and facilities, telehealth or telemedicine services, and promotion of clinical and support processes).

CONCLUSION

One of the main tasks of hospital administrators is identifying the factors affecting the reduction of LOS. Among these factors, clinical and management factors in the hospital are more important and need more planning and attention by hospital officials.

Differentiating Urgent from Elective Cases Matters in Minority Populations: Developing an Ordinal "Desirability of Outcome Ranking" to Increase Granularity and Sensitivity of Surgical Outcomes Assessment

BACKGROUND

Surgical analyses often focus on single or binary outcomes; we developed an ordinal Desirability of Outcome Ranking (DOOR) for surgery to increase granularity and sensitivity of surgical outcome assessments. Many studies also combine elective and urgent procedures for risk adjustment. We used DOOR to examine complex associations of race/ethnicity and presentation acuity.

STUDY DESIGN

NSQIP (2013 to 2019) cohort study assessing DOOR outcomes across race/ethnicity groups risk-adjusted for frailty, operative stress, preoperative acute serious conditions, and elective, urgent, and emergent cases.

RESULTS

The cohort included 1,597,199 elective, 340,350 urgent, and 185,073 emergent cases with patient mean age of 60.0 ± 15.8, and 56.4% of the surgeries were performed on female patients. Minority race/ethnicity groups had increased odds of presenting with preoperative acute serious conditions (adjusted odds ratio [aORs] range 1.22 to 1.74), urgent (aOR range 1.04 to 2.21), and emergent (aOR range 1.15 to 2.18) surgeries vs the White group. Black (aOR range 1.23 to 1.34) and Native (aOR range 1.07 to 1.17) groups had increased odds of higher/worse DOOR outcomes; however, the Hispanic group had increased odds of higher/worse DOOR (aOR 1.11, CI 1.10 to 1.13), but decreased odds (aORs range 0.94 to 0.96) after adjusting for case status; the Asian group had better outcomes vs the White group. DOOR outcomes improved in minority groups when using elective vs elective/urgent cases as the reference group.

CONCLUSIONS

NSQIP surgical DOOR is a new method to assess outcomes and reveals a complex interplay between race/ethnicity and presentation acuity. Combining elective and urgent cases in risk adjustment may penalize hospitals serving a higher proportion of minority populations. DOOR can be used to improve detection of health disparities and serves as a roadmap for the development of other ordinal surgical outcomes measures. Improving surgical outcomes should focus on decreasing preoperative acute serious conditions and urgent and emergent surgeries, possibly by improving access to care, especially for minority populations.

Poor handling of continuous predictors in clinical prediction models using logistic regression: a systematic review

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

When developing a clinical prediction model, assuming a linear relationship between the continuous predictors and outcome is not recommended. Incorrect specification of the functional form of continuous predictors could reduce predictive accuracy. We examine how continuous predictors are handled in studies developing a clinical prediction model.

METHODS

We searched PubMed for clinical prediction model studies developing a logistic regression model for a binary outcome, published between July 01, 2020, and July 30, 2020.

RESULTS

In total, 118 studies were included in the review (18 studies (15%) assessed the linearity assumption or used methods to handle nonlinearity, and 100 studies (85%) did not). Transformation and splines were commonly used to handle nonlinearity, used in 7 (n = 7/18, 39%) and 6 (n = 6/18, 33%) studies, respectively. Categorization was most often used method to handle continuous predictors (n = 67/118, 56.8%) where most studies used dichotomization (n = 40/67, 60%). Only ten models included nonlinear terms in the final model (n = 10/18, 56%).

CONCLUSION

Though widely recommended not to categorize continuous predictors or assume a linear relationship between outcome and continuous predictors, most studies categorize continuous predictors, few studies assess the linearity assumption, and even fewer use methodology to account for nonlinearity. Methodological guidance is provided to guide researchers on how to handle continuous predictors when developing a clinical prediction model.

A framework for perioperative care for lower extremity vascular bypasses: A Consensus Statement by the Enhanced Recovery after Surgery (ERAS®) Society and Society for Vascular Surgery

The Society for Vascular Surgery and the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) Society formally collaborated and elected an international, multi-disciplinary panel of experts to review the literature and provide evidence-based suggestions for coordinated perioperative care for patients undergoing infrainguinal bypass surgery for peripheral artery disease. Structured around the ERAS core elements, 26 suggestions were made and organized into preadmission, preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative sections.

Interpreting the risk analysis index of frailty in the context of surgical oncology

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

The Risk Analysis Index (RAI) accurately predicts adverse postoperative outcomes but the inclusion of cancer status in the RAI has raised two key concerns about its suitability for use in surgical oncology: (1) the potential over classification of cancer patients as frail, and (2) the potential overestimation of postoperative mortality for patients with surgically curable cancers.

METHODS

We performed a retrospective cohort analysis to assess the RAI's power to appropriately identify frailty and predict postoperative mortality in cancer patients. We assessed discrimination for mortality and calibration across five RAI models-the complete RAI and four variants that removed different cancer-related variables.

RESULTS

We found that the presence of disseminated cancer was a key variable driving the RAI's power to predict postoperative mortality. The model including only this variable [RAI (disseminated cancer)] was similar to the complete RAI in the overall sample (c = 0.842 vs. 0.840) and outperformed the complete RAI in the cancer subgroup (c = 0.736 vs 0.704, respectively, p < 0.0001, Max R2  = 19.3% vs. 15.1%, respectively).

CONCLUSION

The RAI demonstrates somewhat less discrimination when applied exclusively to cancer patients, but remains a strong predictor of postoperative mortality, especially in the setting of disseminated cancer.

Increasing Quality and Frequency of Goals-of-Care Documentation in the Highest-Risk Surgical Candidates: One-Year Results of the Surgical Pause Program

Patient values may be obscured when decisions are made under the circumstances of constrained time and limited counseling. The objective of this study was to determine if a multidisciplinary review aimed at ensuring goal-concordant treatment and perioperative risk assessment in high-risk orthopaedic trauma patients would increase the quality and frequency of goals-of-care documentation without increasing the rate of adverse events.

Methods

We prospectively analyzed a longitudinal cohort of adult patients treated for traumatic orthopaedic injuries that were neither life- nor limb-threatening between January 1, 2020, and July 1, 2021. A rapid multidisciplinary review termed a "surgical pause" (SP) was available to those who were ≥80 years old, were nonambulatory or had minimal ambulation at baseline, and/or resided in a skilled nursing facility, as well as upon clinician request. Metrics analyzed include the proportion and quality of goals-of-care documentation, rate of return to the hospital, complications, length of stay, and mortality. Statistical analysis utilized the Kruskal-Wallis rank and Wilcoxon rank-sum tests for continuous variables and the likelihood-ratio chi-square test for categorical variables.

Results

A total of 133 patients were either eligible for the SP or referred by a clinician. Compared with SP-eligible patients who did not undergo an SP, patients who underwent an SP more frequently had goals-of-care notes identified (92.4% versus 75.0%, p = 0.014) and recorded in the appropriate location (71.2% versus 27.5%, p < 0.001), and the notes were more often of high quality (77.3% versus 45.0%, p < 0.001). Mortality rates were nominally higher among SP patients, but these differences were not significant (10.6% versus 5.0%, 5.1% versus 0.0%, and 14.3% versus 7.9% for in-hospital, 30-day, and 90-day mortality, respectively; p > 0.08 for all).

Conclusions

The pilot program indicated that an SP is a feasible and effective means of increasing the quality and frequency of goals-of-care documentation in high-risk operative candidates whose traumatic orthopaedic injuries are neither life- nor limb-threatening. This multidisciplinary program aims for goal-concordant treatment plans that minimize modifiable perioperative risks.

Level of Evidence

Therapeutic Level III. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

Cognitive Impairment is Common in a Veterans Affairs Population with Peripheral Arterial Disease

BACKGROUND

Despite the shared pathogenesis of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and vascular dementia, there are little data on cognitive impairment in PAD patients. We hypothesized that cognitive impairment will be common and previously unrecognized.

METHODS

Cognitive impairment screening was prospectively performed for veterans presenting to a single Veterans Affairs outpatient vascular surgery clinic from 2020-2021 for PAD consultation or disease surveillance. Overall, 125 Veterans were screened. Cognitive impairment was defined as a score of <26 on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) survey. A multivariable logistic regression assessed for independent risk factors for cognitive impairment.

RESULTS

Overall, 77 (61%) had cognitive impairment, 92% was previously unrecognized. Cognitive impairment was associated with increased age (74.4 vs. 71.8 years, P = 0.03), Black versus White race (94% vs. 54%, P < 0.01), hypertension (66% vs. 31%, P = 0.01), prior stroke/TIA (79% vs. 58%, P = 0.03), diabetes treated with insulin (79% vs. 58%, P = 0.05), and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (80% vs. 57%, P = 0.04). On multivariable analysis, risk factors for newly diagnosed cognitive impairment included age ≥70 years, diabetes treated with insulin, PTSD, and Black race.

CONCLUSIONS

Many veterans with PAD have evidence of cognitive impairment and is overwhelmingly underdiagnosed. This study suggests cognitive impairment is an unrecognized issue in a VA population with PAD, requiring more study to determine cognitive impairment's impact on surgical outcomes, and how it can be mitigated and incorporated into clinical care.

Independent Associations of Neighborhood Deprivation and Patient-level Social Determinants of Health with Textbook Outcomes after Inpatient Surgery

Objective

Assess associations of Social Determinants of Health (SDoH) using Area Deprivation Index (ADI), race/ethnicity and insurance type with Textbook Outcomes (TO).

Summary Background Data

Individual- and contextual-level SDoH affect health outcomes, but only one SDoH level is usually included.

Methods

Three healthcare system cohort study using National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (2013-2019) linked with ADI risk-adjusted for frailty, case status and operative stress examining TO/TO components (unplanned reoperations, complications, mortality, Emergency Department/Observation Stays and readmissions).

Results

Cohort (34,251 cases) mean age 58.3 [SD=16.0], 54.8% females, 14.1% Hispanics, 11.6% Non-Hispanic Blacks, 21.6% with ADI>85, and 81.8% TO. Racial and ethnic minorities, non-Private insurance, and ADI>85 patients had increased odds of urgent/emergent surgeries (aORs range: 1.17-2.83, all P<.001). Non-Hispanic Black patients, ADI>85 and non-Private insurances had lower TO odds (aORs range: 0.55-0.93, all P<.04), but ADI>85 lost significance after including case status. Urgent/emergent versus elective had lower TO odds (aOR=0.51, P<.001). ADI>85 patients had higher complication and mortality odds. Estimated reduction in TO probability was 9.9% (CI=7.2%-12.6%) for urgent/emergent cases, 7.0% (CI=4.6%-9.3%) for Medicaid, and 1.6% (CI=0.2%-3.0%) for non-Hispanic Black patients. TO probability difference for lowest-risk (White-Private-ADI≤85-elective) to highest-risk (Black-Medicaid-ADI>85-urgent/emergent) was 29.8% for very frail patients.

Conclusion

Multi-level SDoH had independent effects on TO, predominately affecting outcomes through increased rates/odds of urgent/emergent surgeries driving complications and worse outcomes. Lowest-risk versus highest-risk scenarios demonstrated the magnitude of intersecting SDoH variables. Combination of insurance type and ADI should be used to identify high-risk patients to redesign care pathways to improve outcomes. Risk adjustment including contextual neighborhood deprivation and patient-level SDoH could reduce unintended consequences of value-based programs.

Association of Insurance Type With Inpatient Surgery 30-Day Complications and Costs

INTRODUCTION

Safety-net hospitals (SNHs) have higher postoperative complications and costs versus low-burden hospitals. Do low socioeconomic status/vulnerable patients receive care at lower-quality hospitals or are there factors beyond providers' control? We studied the association of private, Medicare, and vulnerable insurance type with complications/costs in a high-burden SNH.

METHODS

Retrospective inpatient cohort study using National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) data (2013-2019) with cost data risk-adjusted by frailty, preoperative serious acute conditions (PASC), case status, and expanded operative stress score (OSS) to evaluate 30-day unplanned reoperations, any complication, Clavien-Dindo IV (CDIV) complications, and hospitalization variable costs.

RESULTS

Cases (Private 1517; Medicare 1224; Vulnerable 3648) with patient mean age 52.3 y [standard deviation = 14.7] and 47.3% male. Adjusting for frailty and OSS, vulnerable patients had higher odds of PASC (aOR = 1.71, CI = 1.39-2.10, P < 0.001) versus private. Adjusting for frailty, PASC and OSS, Medicare (aOR = 1.27, CI = 1.06-1.53, P = 0.009), and vulnerable (aOR = 2.44, CI = 2.13-2.79, P < 0.001) patients were more likely to undergo urgent/emergent surgeries. Vulnerable patients had increased odds of reoperation and any complications versus private. Variable cost percentage change was similar between private and vulnerable after adjusting for case status. Urgent/emergent case status increased percentage change costs by 32.31%. We simulated "switching" numbers of private (3648) versus vulnerable (1517) cases resulting in an estimated variable cost of $49.275 million, a 25.2% decrease from the original $65.859 million.

CONCLUSIONS

Increased presentation acuity (PASC and urgent/emergent surgeries) in vulnerable patients drive increased odds of complications and costs versus private, suggesting factors beyond providers' control. The greatest impact on outcomes may be from decreasing the incidence of urgent/emergent surgeries by improving access to care.

Sex-Related Differences in Acuity and Postoperative Complications, Mortality and Failure to Rescue

INTRODUCTION

Yentl syndrome describing sex-related disparities has been extensively studied in medical conditions but not after surgery. This retrospective cohort study assessed the association of sex, frailty, presenting with preoperative acute serious conditions (PASC), and the expanded Operative Stress Score (OSS) with postoperative complications, mortality, and failure-to-rescue.

METHODS

The National Surgical Quality Improvement Program from 2015 to 2019 evaluating 30-d complications, mortality, and failure-to-rescue.

RESULTS

Of 4,860,308 cases (43% were male; mean [standard deviation] age of 56 [17] y), 6.0 and 0.8% were frail and very frail, respectively. Frailty score distribution was higher in men versus women (P < 0.001). Most cases were low-stress OSS2 (44.9%) or moderate-stress OSS3 (44.5%) surgeries. While unadjusted 30-d mortality rates were higher (P < 0.001) in males (1.1%) versus females (0.8%), males had lower odds of mortality (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 0.92, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.90-0.94, P < 0.001) after adjusting for frailty, OSS, case status, PASC, and Clavien-Dindo IV (CDIV) complications. Males have higher odds of PASC (aOR = 1.33, CI = 1.31-1.35, P < 0.001) and CDIV complications (aOR = 1.13, CI = 1.12-1.15, P < 0.001). Male-PASC (aOR = 0.76, CI = 0.72-0.80, P < 0.001) and male-CDIV (aOR = 0.87, CI = 0.83-0.91, P < 0.001) interaction terms demonstrated that the increased odds of mortality associated with PASC or CDIV complications/failure-to-rescue were lower in males versus females.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study provides a comprehensive analysis of sex-related surgical outcomes across a wide range of procedures and health care systems. Females presenting with PASC or experiencing CDIV complications had higher odds of mortality/failure to rescue suggesting sex-related care differences. Yentl syndrome may be present in surgical patients; possibly related to differences in presenting symptoms, patient care preferences, or less aggressive care in female patients and deserves further study.

Cost of Failure to Achieve Textbook Outcomes: Association of Insurance Type with Outcomes and Cumulative Cost for Inpatient Surgery

BACKGROUND

Surgical outcome/cost analyses typically focus on single outcomes and do not include encounters beyond the index hospitalization.

STUDY DESIGN

This cohort study used NSQIP (2013-2019) data with electronic health record and cost data risk-adjusted for frailty, preoperative acute serious conditions (PASC), case status, and operative stress assessing cumulative costs of failure to achieve textbook outcomes defined as absence of 30-day Clavien-Dindo level III and IV complications, emergency department visits/observation stays (EDOS), and readmissions across insurance types (private, Medicare, Medicaid, uninsured). Return costs were defined as costs of all 30-day emergency department visits/observation stays and readmissions.

RESULTS

Cases were performed on patients (private 1,506; Medicare 1,218; Medicaid 1,420; uninsured 2,178) with a mean age 52.3 years (SD 14.7) and 47.5% male. Medicaid and uninsured patients had higher odds of presenting with preoperative acute serious conditions (adjusted odds ratios 1.89 and 1.81, respectively) and undergoing urgent/emergent surgeries (adjusted odds ratios 2.23 and 3.02, respectively) vs private. Medicaid and uninsured patients had lower odds of textbook outcomes (adjusted odds ratios 0.53 and 0.78, respectively) and higher odds of emergency department visits/observation stays and readmissions vs private. Not achieving textbook outcomes was associated with a greater than 95.1% increase in cumulative costs. Medicaid patients had a relative increase of 23.1% in cumulative costs vs private, which was 18.2% after adjusting for urgent/emergent cases. Return costs were 37.5% and 65.8% higher for Medicaid and uninsured patients, respectively, vs private.

CONCUSIONS

Higher costs for Medicaid patients were partially driven by increased presentation acuity (increased rates/odds of preoperative acute serious conditions and urgent/emergent surgeries) and higher rates of multiple emergency department visits/observation stays and readmission occurrences. Decreasing surgical costs/improving outcomes should focus on reducing urgent/emergent surgeries and improving postoperative care coordination, especially for Medicaid and uninsured populations.

Association of Frailty and the Expanded Operative Stress Score with Preoperative Acute Serious Conditions, Complications, and Mortality in Males Compared to Females: A Retrospective Observational Study

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to expand Operative Stress Score (OSS) increasing procedural coverage and assessing OSS and frailty association with Preoperative Acute Serious Conditions (PASC), complications and mortality in females versus males.

SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA

Veterans Affairs male-dominated study showed high mortality in frail veterans even after very low stress surgeries (OSS1).

METHODS

Retrospective cohort using NSQIP data (2013-2019) merged with 180-day postoperative mortality from multiple hospitals to evaluate PASC, 30-day complications and 30-, 90-, and 180-day mortality.

RESULTS

OSS expansion resulted in 98.2% case coverage versus 87.0% using the original. Of 82,269 patients (43.8% male), 7.9% were frail/very frail. Males had higher odds of PASC [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 1.31, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.21-1.41, P < 0.001] and severe/life-threatening Clavien-Dindo IV (CDIV) complications (aOR = 1.18, 95% CI = 1.09-1.28, P < 0.001). Although mortality rates were higher (all time-points, P < 0.001) in males versus females, mortality was similar after adjusting for frailty, OSS, and case status primarily due to increased male frailty scores. Additional adjustments for PASC and CDIV resulted in a lower odds of mortality in males (30-day, aOR = 0.81, 95% CI = 0.71-0.92, P = 0.002) that was most pronounced for males with PASC compared to females with PASC (30-day, aOR = 0.75, 95% CI = 0.56-0.99, P = 0.04).

CONCLUSIONS

Similar to the male-dominated Veteran population, private sector, frail patients have high likelihood of postoperative mortality, even after low-stress surgeries. Preoperative frailty screening should be performed regardless of magnitude of the procedure. Despite males experiencing higher adjusted odds of PASC and CDIV complications, females with PASC had higher odds of mortality compared to males, suggesting differences in the aggressiveness of care provided to men and women.

Risk Analysis Index and Its Recalibrated Version Predict Postoperative Outcomes Better Than 5-Factor Modified Frailty Index in Traumatic Spinal Injury

OBJECTIVE

To assess the discriminative ability of the Risk Analysis Index-administrative (RAI-A) and its recalibrated version (RAI-Rev), compared to the 5-factor modified frailty index (mFI-5), in predicting postoperative outcomes in patients undergoing surgical intervention for traumatic spine injuries (TSIs).

METHODS

The Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) and International Classification of Disease-9 (ICD-9) and ICD-10 codes were used to identify patients ≥ 18 years who underwent surgical intervention for TSI from National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) database 2015-2019 (n = 6,571). Multivariate analysis and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis were conducted to evaluate the comparative discriminative ability of RAI-Rev, RAI-A, and mFI-5 for 30-day postoperative outcomes.

RESULTS

Multivariate regression analysis showed that with all 3 frailty scores, increasing frailty tiers resulted in worse postoperative outcomes, and patients identified as frail and severely frail using RAI-Rev and RAI-A had the highest odds of poor outcomes. In the ROC curve/C-statistics analysis for prediction of 30-day mortality and morbidity, both RAI-Rev and RAI-A outperformed mFI-5, and for many outcomes, RAI-Rev showed better discriminative performance compared to RAI-A, including mortality (p = 0.0043, DeLong test), extended length of stay (p = 0.0042), readmission (p < 0.0001), reoperation (p = 0.0175), and nonhome discharge (p < 0.0001).

CONCLUSION

Both RAI-Rev and RAI-A performed better than mFI-5, and RAI-Rev was superior to RAI-A in predicting postoperative mortality and morbidity in TSI patients. RAI-based frailty indices can be used in preoperative risk assessment of spinal trauma patients.

Preoperative frailty measured by risk analysis index predicts complications and poor discharge outcomes after Brain Tumor Resection in a large multi-center analysis

PURPOSE

To evaluate the independent effect of frailty, as measured by the Risk Analysis Index-Administrative (RAI-A) for postoperative complications and discharge outcomes following brain tumor resection (BTR) in a large multi-center analysis.

METHODS

Patients undergoing BTR were queried from the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSIQP) for the years 2015 to 2019. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to evaluate the independent associations between frailty tools (age, 5-factor modified frailty score [mFI-5], and RAI-A) on postoperative complications and discharge outcomes.

RESULTS

We identified 30,951 patients who underwent craniotomy for BTR; the median age of our study sample was 59 (IQR 47-68) years old and 47.8% of patients were male. Overall, increasing RAI-A score, in an overall stepwise fashion, was associated with increasing risk of adverse outcomes including in-hospital mortality, non-routine discharge, major complications, Clavien-Dindo Grade IV complication, and extended length of stay. Multivariable regression analysis (adjusting for age, sex, BMI, non-elective surgery status, race, and ethnicity) demonstrated that RAI-A was an independent predictor for worse BTR outcomes. The RAI-A tiers 41-45 (1.2% cohort) and > 45 (0.3% cohort) were ~ 4 (Odds Ratio [OR]: 4.3, 95% CI: 2.1-8.9) and ~ 9 (OR: 9.5, 95% CI: 3.9-22.9) times more likely to have in-hospital mortality compared to RAI-A 0-20 (34% cohort).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

Increasing preoperative frailty as measured by the RAI-A score is independently associated with increased risk of complications and adverse discharge outcomes after BTR. The RAI-A may help providers present better preoperative risk assessment for patients and families weighing the risks and benefits of potential BTR.

Current Clinical Implications of Frailty and Sarcopenia in Vascular Surgery: A Comprehensive Review of the Literature and Consideration of Perioperative Management

Frailty is a well-known geriatric syndrome of impaired physiological reserve and increased vulnerability to stressors. Sarcopenia is also used as a parameter of physical impairment characterized by muscle weakness. As population aging has become more prominent in recent years, both modalities are now regarded as clinically important prognostic tools defined by multidimensional factors that may affect clinical outcomes in various clinical settings. A preoperative surgical risk analysis is mandatory to predict clinical and surgical outcomes in all surgical practices, particularly in high-risk surgical patients. In vascular surgical settings, frailty and sarcopenia have been accepted as useful prognostic tools to evaluate patient characteristics before surgery, as these may predict perioperative clinical and surgical outcomes. Although minimally invasive surgical approaches, such as endovascular therapy, and hybrid approaches have been universally developed, achieving good vascular surgical outcomes for high-risk cohorts remains to be challenge due to the increasing prevalence of elderly patients and multiple preoperative co-morbidities in addition to frailty and sarcopenia. Therefore, to further improve clinical and surgical outcomes, these preoperative geriatric prognostic factors will be of great importance and interest in vascular surgical settings for both physicians and surgeons.

Association of Smoking With Postprocedural Complications Following Open and Endovascular Interventions for Intermittent Claudication

Importance

Smoking is a key modifiable risk factor in the development and progression of peripheral artery disease, which often manifests as intermittent claudication (IC). Smoking cessation is a first-line therapy for IC, yet a minority of patients quit smoking prior to elective revascularization.

Objective

To assess if preprocedural smoking is associated with an increased risk of early postprocedural complications following elective open and endovascular revascularization.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This retrospective cohort study used nearest-neighbor (1:1) propensity score matching of 2011 to 2019 data from the Veterans Affairs Surgical Quality Improvement Program, including all cases with a primary diagnosis of IC and excluding emergent cases, primary procedures that were not lower extremity revascularization, and patients with chronic limb-threatening ischemia within 30 days of the intervention. All data were abstracted June 18, 2020, and analyzed from July 26, 2020, to June 30, 2021.

Exposures

Preprocedural cigarette smoking.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Any and organ system-specific (ie, wound, respiratory, thrombosis, kidney, cardiac, sepsis, and neurological) 30-day complications and mortality, overall and in prespecified subgroups.

Results

Of 14 350 included cases of revascularization, 14 090 patients (98.2%) were male, and the mean (SD) age was 65.7 (7.0) years. A total of 7820 patients (54.5%) were smoking within the preprocedural year. There were a total of 4417 endovascular revascularizations (30.8%), 4319 hybrid revascularizations (30.1%), and 5614 open revascularizations (39.1%). A total of 1594 patients (11.1%) had complications, and 57 (0.4%) died. Among 7710 propensity score-matched cases (including 3855 smokers and 3855 nonsmokers), 484 smokers (12.6%) and 34 nonsmokers (8.9%) experienced complications, an absolute risk difference (ARD) of 3.68% (95% CI, 2.31-5.06; P < .001). Compared with nonsmokers, any complication was higher for smokers following endovascular revascularization (26 [4.3%] vs 52 [2.1%]; ARD, 2.19%; 95% CI, 0.77-3.60; P = .003), hybrid revascularization (204 [17.3%] vs 163 [14.1%]; ARD, 3.18%; 95% CI, 0.23-6.13; P = .04), and open revascularization (228 [15.4%] vs 153 [10.3%]; ARD, 5.18%; 95% CI, 2.78-7.58; P < .001). Compared with nonsmokers, respiratory complications were higher for smokers following endovascular revascularization (20 [1.7%] vs 6 [0.5%]; ARD, 1.17%; 95% CI, 0.35-2.00; P = .009), hybrid revascularization (33 [2.8%] vs 10 [0.9%]; ARD, 1.93%; 95% CI, 0.85-3.02; P = .001), and open revascularization (32 [2.2%] vs 19 [1.3%]; ARD, 0.89%; 95% CI, 0-1.80; P = .06). Wound complications and graft failure were higher for smokers compared with nonsmokers following open interventions (wound complications: 146 [9.9%] vs 87 [5.8%]; ARD, 4.05%; 95% CI, 2.12-5.99; P < .001; graft failure: 33 [2.2%] vs 11 [0.7%]; ARD, 1.50%; 95% CI, 0.63-2.37; P = .001). In a sensitivity analysis, compared with active smokers (n = 5173; smoking within 2 weeks before the procedure), the risk of any complication was decreased by 65% for never smokers (n = 1197; adjusted odds ratio, 0.45; 95% CI, 0.34-0.59) and 29% for former smokers (n = 4755; cessation more than 1 year before the procedure; adjusted odds ratio, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.61-0.83; P = .001 for interaction).

Conclusions and Relevance

In this cohort study, more than half of patients with IC were smoking prior to elective revascularization, and complication risks were higher across all modalities of revascularization. These findings stress the importance of smoking cessation to optimize revascularization outcomes.

Role of pre-operative frailty status in relation to outcome after carotid endarterectomy: a systematic review

Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) is a surgical treatment option to prevent ischemic cerebrovascular accidents. Patients that present with pre-operative frailty might have an elevated risk for unfavorable outcomes after the CEA. A systematic search, using Medline, Embase, Web of Science and Cochrane Database, was performed for relevant literature on frailty in patients undergoing CEA. The study protocol was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42020190345). Eight articles were included. The pooled prevalence for pre-operative frailty was 23.9% (95% CI: 12.98-34.82). A difference in the incidence of complications between frail and non-frail patients (6.4% vs. 5.2%, respectively) and a difference in hospital length of stay [2 (IQR: 2-3) days vs. 1 (IQR: 1-2) day, respectively] were described. The 30-day mortality after CEA was 0.6% for non-frail patients, 2.6% for frail patients, and 4.9% for very frail patients (P<0.001). For 3-year mortality, a >1.5-fold increased risk was found for frail patients (OR 1.7, 95% CI: 1.4-2.0) and a >2.5-fold increased risk for very frail patients (OR 2.6, 95% CI: 2.2-3.1). In conclusion, this review shows the impact of frailty on outcome after CEA. Pre-operative frailty assessment with a validated, multi-domain tool should be implemented in the clinical setting as it will provide information on post-operative surgical outcomes and mortality risk but also frailty trajectory and cognitive decline.

Impact of Frailty on Clinical Outcomes after Carotid Artery Revascularization

BACKGROUND

Frailty has been increasingly recognized as an important risk factor for vascular procedures. To assess the impact of frailty on clinical outcomes and resource utilization in patients undergoing carotid revascularization using a national cohort.

METHODS

The 2005-2017 National Inpatient Sample was used to identify patients who underwent carotid endarterectomy (CEA) or carotid stenting (CAS). Patients were classified as frail using diagnosis codes defined by the Johns Hopkins Adjusted Clinical Groups frailty indicator. Multivariable regression was used to evaluate associations between frailty and in-hospital mortality, postoperative stroke, myocardial infarction (MI), hospitalization costs, and length of stay (LOS).

RESULTS

Of 1,426,343 patients undergoing carotid revascularization, 59,158 (4.2%) were identified as frail. Among frail patients, 79.4% underwent CEA and 20.6% underwent CAS. Compared to CEA, a greater proportion of patients undergoing CAS were frail (6.0% vs. 3.8%, P < 0.001). Compared to the nonfrail cohort, frail patients had higher rates of mortality (2.2% vs. 0.5%, P < 0.001), postoperative stroke (2.6% vs. 1.0%, P < 0.001), MI (2.2% vs. 0.8%, P < 0.001), and stroke/death (4.4% vs. 1.4%, P < 0.001). After adjustment, frailty was associated with increased odds of mortality (AOR = 1.59, 95% CI: 1.30-1.80, P < 0.001), stroke (AOR = 1.66, 95% CI: 1.38-1.83 P < 0.001), MI (AOR = 1.51, 95% CI: 1.29-1.72, P < 0.001), and stroke/death (AOR = 1.62, 95% CI: 1.45-1.81, P < 0.001). Furthermore, frailty was associated with increased hospitalization costs (β = +$5,980, 95% CI: $5,490-$6,470, P < 0.001) and LOS (β = +2.6 days, 95% CI: 2.4-2.8, P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Frailty is associated with adverse outcomes and greater resource use for those undergoing carotid revascularization. Risk models should include an assessment of frailty to guide management and improve outcomes for these high-risk patients.

Chronic Lower Extremity Ischemia and Its Association with the Frailty Syndrome in Patients with Diabetes

Diabetes mellitus is an important risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseases. Peripheral arterial disease affecting lower limb arteries is one of the clinical manifestations of atherosclerosis. The frailty syndrome (Frailty) is a problem associated with diminution of physiological reserves. The ankle-brachial index is a commonly used tool for diagnosing peripheral arterial disease (PAD). The usefulness of the ankle-brachial index (ABI) is limited in people with diabetes because of calcification of the middle layer of arteries. In this population, toe-brachial index should be measured. Frailty may be associated with worse prognosis for patients undergoing revascularization. Amputation may be an important factor leading to the development of Frailty. The risk of amputation and the prognosis after revascularization may be modified by some medications and blood glucose levels. The purpose of this paper is to review the literature about the association between PAD, especially in patients living with diabetes and Frailty.

5-Item Modified Frailty Index Predicts Outcomes After Below-Knee Amputation in the Vascular Quality Initiative Amputation Registry

Patient frailty indices are increasingly being utilized to anticipate post-operative complications. This study explores whether a 5-factor modified frailty index (mFI-5) is associated with outcomes following below-knee amputation (BKA). All BKAs in the vascular quality initiative (VQI) amputation registry from 2012-2017 were reviewed. Preoperative frailty status was determined with the mFI-5 which assigns one point each for history of diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or active pneumonia, congestive heart failure, hypertension, and nonindependent functional status. Outcomes included 30-day mortality, unplanned return to odds ratio (OR), post-op myocardial infarction (MI), post-op SSI, all-cause complication, revision to higher level amputation, disposition status, and prosthetic use. 2040 BKAs were performed. Logistic regression showed an increasing mFI-5 score that was associated with higher risk of combined complications (OR 1.22, confidence interval [CI] 1.07-1.38, P < .05), 30-day mortality (OR 1.60, CI 1.19-2.16, P < .05), post-op MI (OR 1.79, CI 1.30-2.45, P < .05), and failure of long-term prosthetic use (OR 1.17, CI 1.03-1.32, P < .05). In the VQI, every one-point increase in mFI-5 is associated with an increased risk of 22% for combined complications, 60% for 30-day mortality, nearly 80% for post-op MI, and 17% for failure of prosthetic use in BKA patients. The mFI-5 frailty index should be incorporated into preoperative planning and risk stratification.

Long-Term Impact of Vascular Surgery Stress on Frail Older Patients

BACKGROUND

Frailty is a syndrome where the ability to cope with acute physiological stress is compromised, although it is unclear what impact this stress has on long-term outcomes. Vascular-Physiological and Operative Severity Score for enumeration of Mortality and Morbidity is a validated method for calculating levels of stress associated with vascular procedures. We designed this study to evaluate the long-term impact of different levels of surgical stress among frail older patients undergoing vascular surgery procedures.

METHODS

We identified all independently living patients who underwent prospective frailty assessment followed by an elective vascular surgery procedure captured in the Vascular Quality Initiative registry (endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm [AAA] repair, thoracic endovascular aortic repair, suprainguinal and infrainguinal bypass, peripheral vascular intervention, carotid endarterectomy, and open AAA) at an academic institution between January 2016 and July 2018. Patient- and procedure-level data were obtained from our institutional data warehouse and Vascular Quality Initiative database, and used to calculate Vascular-Physiological and Operative Severity Score for enumeration of Mortality and Morbidity scores. The association between frailty and composite outcome of any major complications (surgical site infection; graft thrombectomy; major amputation; adverse cardiac, pulmonary, or neurologic event; acute renal insufficiency; and/or reoperation related to the index procedure), nonhome living status, or death within 1 year after low-, medium-, and high-stress vascular procedures was evaluated using bivariate and logistic regression models.

RESULTS

A total of 163 patients were identified (70% male, mean age 67.8 years) who underwent open AAA repair (6%), endovascular AAA repair (21%), thoracic endovascular aortic repair (7%), suprainguinal bypass (5%), infrainguinal bypass (18%), carotid endarterectomy (18%), or peripheral vascular interventions (25%), which included 44 (27%) patients diagnosed with frailty before surgery. Overall, frail patients had significantly higher rates of the 1-year composite outcome (48% frail versus 27% nonfrail; P = 0.012) when compared with nonfrail patients, with a significant dose-dependent effect as the level of stress increased. In comparison, increasing levels of surgical stress had a negligible effect on long-term outcomes among nonfrail patients. The interaction between frailty and high surgical stress was found in adjusted regression models to be a significant predictor of adverse outcomes within 1 year after vascular surgery (odds ratio, 3.3; 95% confidence interval, 1.3-8.6; P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS

Frail patients who undergo high-stress vascular procedures have a significantly higher rate of complications leading to loss of functional independence and mortality within the year after their surgery. These data suggest that estimates of surgical stress should be incorporated into clinical decision making for frail older patients before and after surgery.