Patient and surgeon factors are associated with the use of laparoscopy in appendicitis

Laparoscopy Compared With Laparotomy for the Management of Pediatric Blunt Abdominal Trauma

BACKGROUND

There is minimal evidence evaluating the risks and benefits of laparoscopy use in hemodynamically stable children with suspected abdominal injuries. The objective of this study was to evaluate postoperative outcomes in a large cohort of hemodynamically stable pediatric patients with blunt abdominal injury.

METHODS

Using the 2015-2016 National Trauma Data Bank, all patients aged <18 y with injury severity score (ISS) ≤25, Glasgow coma scale ≥13, and normal blood pressure who underwent an abdominal operation for blunt abdominal trauma were included. Patients were grouped into three treatment groups: laparotomy, laparoscopy, and laparoscopy converted to laparotomy. Treatment effect estimation with inverse probability weighting was used to determine the association between treatment group and outcomes of interest.

RESULTS

Of 720 patients, 504 underwent laparotomy, 132 underwent laparoscopy, and 84 underwent laparoscopy converted to laparotomy. The median age was 10 (IQR: 7-15) y, and the median ISS was 9 (IQR: 5-14). Mean hospital length of stay was 2.1 d shorter (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.9-3.2 d) and mean intensive care unit length of stay was 1.1 d shorter (95% CI: 0.6-1.5 d) for the laparoscopy group compared with the laparotomy group. The laparoscopy group had a 2.0% lower mean probability of surgical site infection than the laparotomy group (95% CI: 1.0%-3.0%).

CONCLUSIONS

In this cohort of hemodynamically stable pediatric patients with blunt abdominal injury, laparoscopy may have improved outcomes over laparotomy.

Effect of hospital volume on outcomes of laparoscopic appendectomy for acute appendicitis: an observational study

BACKGROUND

This study investigated the effect of hospital volume on outcomes of laparoscopic appendectomy for acute appendicitis.

METHODS

In total, 30,525 patients who underwent laparoscopic appendectomy for acute appendicitis were referred to 825 hospitals in Japan from 2010 to 2012. We compared appendectomy-related complications, length of stay (LOS), and medical costs in relation to hospital volume. For this study period, hospitals were categorized as low-volume hospitals (LVHs, <50 cases), medium-volume hospitals (MVHs, 50-100 cases), or high-volume hospitals (HVHs, >100 cases).

RESULTS

Significant differences in appendectomy-related complications were observed among the LVHs, MVHs, and HVHs (6.9, 7.2, and 6.0 %, respectively; p = 0.001). Multiple logistic regression revealed that HVHs were associated with a lower relative risk of appendectomy-related complications than were LVHs and MVHs (odds ratio [OR], 0.84; 95 % confidence interval [CI], 0.74-0.95; p = 0.006). Multiple linear regression showed that HVHs were associated with shorter LOS and lower medical costs than were LVHs and MVHs. The unstandardized coefficient for LOS was -0.92 days (95 % CI, -1.07 to -0.78; p < 0.001), whereas that for medical costs was - $167.4 (95 % CI, -256.2 to -78.6; p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Hospital volume was significantly associated with laparoscopic appendectomy outcomes.

The role of laparoscopy in the management of pediatric appendicitis: a survey of Polish pediatric surgeons

Introduction

Despite the increase in use of laparoscopic appendectomy (LA) in recent years, until now no nationwide survey on this issue has been performed in Poland.

Aim

To determine current surgical practice patterns among Polish pediatric surgeons in the treatment of appendicitis in children.

Material and methods

The nationwide survey was conducted in the form of an internet questionnaire asking for information concerning treatment of children suspected of having acute appendicitis in the years 2007–2011. Twenty-seven major pediatric surgical departments in Poland were invited to participate in the study.

Results

The overall survey response rate was 70.37%. Laparoscopic appendectomy was offered in all departments except one. Laparoscopy was used in 33% of cases and was the standard procedure in 4 departments. In 1 center 100% of appendectomies were performed laparoscopically. The 3-port technique was used in all departments. Five centers offered transumbilical laparoscopic extracorporeal appendectomy and 2 centers single-port appendectomy. In LA the mesoappendix was mostly divided using bipolar or monopolar coagulation and the appendix was ligated using endoloops or was clipped. The mean hospitalization time was 3.31 days after laparoscopy and 5.47 days after open appendectomy.

Conclusions

Despite an apparent consensus on some aspects of pediatric appendicitis among Polish pediatric surgeons, significant inconsistency exists in the operative approach. The low rate of LA suggests that LA still remains far from being a standard. Personal experience and preference have a major influence on the choice of operative approach. It is recommended that national guidelines be set up, which could standardize the care for children and training of pediatric surgery residents.

Back to basics: A meta-analysis of stump management during open appendicectomy for uncomplicated acute appendicitis

AIM: To compare simple ligation vs stump invagination during open appendicectomy for uncomplicated acute appendicitis on the risk of postoperative complications.

METHODS: A meta-analysis was conducted on randomised controlled trials comparing the two stump closure methods in open appendicectomy. Databases searched were PubMed, EMBASE and Cochrane Library databases. Included were those studies focusing on inflamed and suppurative appendicitis while perforated and gangrenous appendix was excluded. We also excluded retrospective case-control studies, commentaries, historical technical articles, or trials involving laparoscopic appendicectomies. The outcome of the meta-analysis was to find eventual differences in the incidence of postoperative ileus and wound infections between the two techniques of stump invagination.

RESULTS: Seven studies were included corresponding to 1468 patients. Postoperative complications consisted in wound infections (7%), ileus (4%), pyrexia (2%), vomiting (1%), obstructions from adhesions (0.1%). No cases of peritonitis, fecal fistulas (stump leaks), abdominal abscesses or wound dehiscences were reported. Postoperative ileus within the first 72 h was four times more frequent with stump invagination compared to simple ligation (OR: 4.06; 95%CI: 2.14-7.70; P < 0.0001). No significant differences were noted for wound infections (OR: 1.24; 95%CI: 0.83-1.87; P = 0.30) while for the remaining complications the incidence was extremely low in both groups. There was a high homogeneity on results (Q value for heterogeneity of postoperative ileus P = 0.17; Q value for heterogeneity of wound infections P = 0.98).

CONCLUSION: Stump invagination does not seem to prevent infective complications but is associated with an increased risk of postoperative ileus in uncomplicated cases. Appropriate studies on complicated appendicitis should now evaluate the influence of the two techniques in this higher-risk subgroup.

Construct and concurrent validity of a Nintendo Wii video game made for training basic laparoscopic skills

BACKGROUND

Virtual reality (VR) laparoscopic simulators have been around for more than 10 years and have proven to be cost- and time-effective in laparoscopic skills training. However, most simulators are, in our experience, considered less interesting by residents and are often poorly accessible. Consequently, these devices are rarely used in actual training. In an effort to make a low-cost and more attractive simulator, a custom-made Nintendo Wii game was developed. This game could ultimately be used to train the same basic skills as VR laparoscopic simulators ought to. Before such a video game can be implemented into a surgical training program, it has to be validated according to international standards.

METHODS

The main goal of this study was to test construct and concurrent validity of the controls of a prototype of the game. In this study, the basic laparoscopic skills of experts (surgeons, urologists, and gynecologists, n = 15) were compared to those of complete novices (internists, n = 15) using the Wii Laparoscopy (construct validity). Scores were also compared to the Fundamentals of Laparoscopy (FLS) Peg Transfer test, an already established assessment method for measuring basic laparoscopic skills (concurrent validity).

RESULTS

Results showed that experts were 111 % faster (P = 0.001) on the Wii Laparoscopy task than novices. Also, scores of the FLS Peg Transfer test and the Wii Laparoscopy showed a significant, high correlation (r = 0.812, P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

The prototype setup of the Wii Laparoscopy possesses solid construct and concurrent validity.

Concordance studies between hospital discharge data and medical records for the recording of lower extremity amputation and diabetes in the Republic of Ireland

BACKGROUND

Hospital discharge data have been used to study trends in Lower Extremity Amputation (LEA) rates in people with and without diabetes. The aim of this study was to assess the reliability of routine hospital discharge data in the Republic of Ireland (RoI) for this purpose by determining the level of agreement between hospital discharge data and medical records for both the occurrence of LEA and diagnosis of diabetes.

METHODS

Two concordance studies between hospital discharge data (HIPE) and medical records were performed. To determine the level of agreement for LEA occurrence, HIPE records were compared to theatre logbooks in 9 hospitals utilising HIPE over a two-year period in a defined study area. To determine the level of agreement for diabetes diagnosis, HIPE records were compared to laboratory records in each of the 4 largest hospitals utilising HIPE over a one week period in the same study area. The proportions of positive and negative agreement and Cohen's kappa statistic of agreement were calculated.

RESULTS

During a two-year study period in 9 hospitals, 216 LEAs were recorded in both data sources. Sixteen LEAs were recorded in medical records alone and 25 LEAs were recorded in hospital discharge records alone. The proportion of positive agreement was 0.91 (95% CI 0.88-0.94), the proportion of negative agreement was 0.99 (95% CI 0.98-0.99) and the kappa statistic was 0.91 (95% CI 0.88-0.94). During a one-week study period in 4 hospitals, 49 patients with diabetes and 716 patients without diabetes were recorded in both data sources. Eighteen patients had diabetes in medical records alone and 2 patients had diabetes in hospital discharge records alone. The proportion of positive agreement was 0.83 (95% CI 0.76-0.9), the proportion of negative agreement was 0.99 (95% CI 0.98-0.99) and the kappa statistic was 0.82 (95% CI 0.75-0.89).

CONCLUSIONS

This study detected high levels of agreement between hospital discharge data and medical records for LEA and diabetes in a defined study area. Based on these findings, we suggest that HIPE is sufficiently reliable to monitor trends in LEAs in people with and without diabetes in the RoI.