Decision-making in emergency laparotomy: the role of predicted life expectancy

Introduction: Increasing numbers of older patients are undergoing emergency laparotomy (EL). They are at increased risk of adverse outcomes, making the shared decision on whether to operate challenging. This retrospective cohort study aimed to assess the role of age and life-expectancy predictions on short- and long-term survival in patients undergoing EL. Methods: All patients who underwent EL at one hospital in the West of Scotland between March 2014 to December 2016 were included. Clinical parameters were collected, and patients were followed up to allow reporting of 30-, 60- and 90-day and 1-year mortality rates. Period life expectancy was used to stratify patients into below life expectancy (bLEP) and at-or-above life expectancy (aLEP) groups at presentation. Remaining life expectancy was used to calculate the net years of life gained (NYLG). Results: Some 462 patients underwent EL: 20 per cent in the aLEP group. These patients were older (P < 0.001), had more co-morbidities (P < 0.001) and were high risk on P-POSSUM scoring (P = 0.008). The 30-, 60- and 90-day and 1-year mortality rates were 11, 14, 16 and 23 per cent respectively. Advanced age (P = 0.011) and high ASA score (P = 0.004) and P-POSSUM score (P < 0.001) were independent predictors of death at 1 year on multivariable analysis. The cohort NYLG were 19.2 years. Comparing patients aged less than 70 with those aged 70 years or older, the NYLG were 25.9 versus 5.5 years. Comparing bLEP and aLEP, the NYLG were 22.2 versus 4.4 years. In patients aged 70 years and older, NYLG decreased by more than half in patients with co-morbidities (ASA score 3,4,5) (9.3 versus 4.3 years). Conclusion: Discussions around long-term outcomes after emergency surgery remain difficult. Although age is an influencing factor, predicted life expectancy alone does not provide additional value to shared decision making

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

The influence of systemic inflammation on treatment response and survival in anal squamous cell cancer

AIMS:The incidence of anal squamous cell cancer (SCCA) is rising. Although chemoradiotherapy (CRT) provides a chance of cure, a proportion of patients have an incomplete response or develop recurrence. This study assessed the value of inflammation-based prognostic indicators, including the modified Glasgow Prognostic Score (mGPS) and neutrophil:lymphocyte ratio (NLR), in patients with SCCA treated by CRT with curative intent. MATERIAL AND METHODS:Patients with histologically confirmed SCCA were identified from pathology records. Medical records were retrospectively reviewed and clinical, pathological and treatment characteristics were abstracted. The mGPS (0 = normal C-reactive protein [CRP] and albumin, 1 = CRP >10 mg/l and 2 = CRP >10 mg/l and albumin <35 mg/l) and NLR were calculated from routine blood tests obtained prior to CRT. RESULTS:In total, 118 patients underwent CRT for SCCA between December 2007 and February 2018. Of these, 99 patients had appropriate pretreatment blood results available. Systemic inflammation as indicated by NLR >3 and mGPS >0 was present in 41% and 39% of patients, respectively. Most patients had T2 or larger tumours (n = 85, 86%) without nodal involvement (n = 64, 65%). An elevated mGPS was associated with more advanced T-stage (56% versus 35%, P = 0.036). NLR >5 was associated with nodal positivity (56% versus 31%, P = 0.047). On multivariate analysis, more advanced T-stage (odds ratio 7.49, 95% confidence interval 1.51-37.20, P = 0.014) and a raised mGPS (odds ratio 5.13, 95% confidence interval 1.25-21.14, P = 0.024) were independently related to incomplete CRT response. An elevated mGPS was prognostic of inferior survival (hazard ratio 3.09, 95% confidence interval 1.47-6.50, P = 0.003) and cancer-specific survival (hazard ratio 4.32, 95% confidence interval 1.54-12.15, P = 0.006), independent of TNM stage. CONCLUSION:Systemic inflammation, as measured by the mGPS, is associated with an incomplete CRT response and is independently prognostic of inferior survival in patients with SCCA. The mGPS may offer a simple marker of inferior outcome that could be used to identify high-risk patients