A new study published in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery examines adverse events for orthopedic and spine procedures.
The study authors examined 2,146 patients who underwent knee, hip or spine surgery over a two-year period. The study authors found:
1. Overall adverse event rate was 27 percent. Adverse event rate was highest among spine patients, at 29 percent, compared with 27 percent for knee and 25 percent for hip surgery patients.
2. The majority of adverse events were a low severity grade. Spinal procedures reported more adverse events with a 3 or higher severity grade.
3. Factors independently associated with adverse events include:
• Older age
• Male sex
• Longer operative time
• Longer length of stay
• Patients undergoing revision procedures
4. When taking operative time and length of stay into account, knee surgery had higher odds of adverse events than spine surgery.
5. The study authors concluded, "The association between increasing operative duration and the risk of an adverse event across all anatomical regions and surgical procedures is a unique finding. However, modification of procedure efficiency is multifactorial and warrants further investigation."