Advancing age and 30-day adverse outcomes after nonemergent general surgeries.
OBJECTIVE
To determine whether 30-day postoperative mortality, complications, failure-to-rescue (FTR) rates, and postoperative length of stay increase with advancing age.


METHODS
Retrospective cohort study.


METHODS
Hospitals participating in the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program.


METHODS
Individuals undergoing nonemergent major general surgeries between 2005 and 2008 were studied (N = 165,600).


METHODS
Postoperative outcomes of interest were complications occurring within 30 days of the index operation, return to the operating room within 30 days, FTR after a postoperative complication, postsurgical length of stay, and 30-day mortality.


RESULTS
Postoperative mortality, overall morbidity, and each type of postoperative complication increased with increasing age. Rates of FTR after each type of postoperative complication also increased with age. Mortality in individuals aged 80 and older after renal insufficiency (43.3%), stroke (36.5%), myocardial infarction (MI) (35.6%), and pulmonary complications (25-39%) were particularly high. Median postoperative length of stay increased with age after surgical site infection, urinary tract infection, pneumonia, return to the operating room, and overall morbidity but not after venous thromboembolism, stroke, MI, renal insufficiency, failure to wean from the ventilator, or reintubation.


CONCLUSIONS
Thirty-day mortality and complication and FTR rates increase with age after nonemergent general surgeries. Individuals aged 80 and older have especially high mortality after renal, cardiovascular, and pulmonary complications. Surgeons need to be more selective with advancing age regarding who will benefit from the surgical intervention.
Section of Gastrointestinal, Tumor and Endocrine Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado.
Csaba
C
Gajdos
Deidre
D
Kile
Mary T
MT
Hawn
Emily
E
Finlayson
William G
WG
Henderson
Thomas N
TN
Robinson
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000401:mortality*; D058996:Quality Improvement; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D012307:Risk Factors; D013514:Surgical Procedures, Operative; D015996:Survival Rate / Q000639:trends; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
aging; postsurgical outcomes; surgery