title: Adverse events in a surgical intensive care unit--a cause of increased mortality.
abstract: The incidence and nature of and the outcome following adverse events were studied prospectively in a surgical intensive care unit over a period of 1 year. From a total of 657 patients, 229 (34.8%) suffered 369 adverse events. The number of adverse events per patient ranged from 1 (58.1%) to a maximum of 4 (6.1%). The overall mortality rate was 23.4%. Eighty-seven deaths (20.3%) occurred in patients not suffering an adverse event and 67 (29.3%) in those whose treatment was complicated by an adverse event (P < 0.02). There was no significant difference in mortality between patients with single or multiple events. Twenty-two patients died as a direct result of the event, the commonest reason being loss of airway control. Adverse events contribute significantly to mortality in critically ill patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, University of Natal, Durban.
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Muckart
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bhagwanjee
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Aitchison
mesh_terms: D003422:Critical Care / Q000592:standards*; D017052:Hospital Mortality; D007362:Intensive Care Units / Q000592:standards*