BackgroundPrevious studies have shown that preoperative anaemia in patients undergoing cardiac surgery is associated with adverse outcomes. However, most of these studies were retrospective, had a... Show moreBackgroundPrevious studies have shown that preoperative anaemia in patients undergoing cardiac surgery is associated with adverse outcomes. However, most of these studies were retrospective, had a relatively small sample size, and were from a single centre. The aim of this study was to analyse the relationship between the severity of preoperative anaemia and short- and long-term mortality and morbidity in a large multicentre national cohort of patients undergoing cardiac surgery.MethodsA nationwide, prospective, multicentre registry (Netherlands Heart Registration) of patients undergoing elective cardiac surgery between January 2013 and January 2019 was used for this observational study. Anaemia was defined according to the WHO criteria, and the main study endpoint was 120-day mortality. The association was investigated using multivariable logistic regression analysis.ResultsIn total, 35 484 patients were studied, of whom 6802 (19.2%) were anaemic. Preoperative anaemia was associated with an increased risk of 120-day mortality (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.7; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.4–1.9; P<0.001). The risk of 120-day mortality increased with anaemia severity (mild anaemia aOR 1.6; 95% CI: 1.3–1.9; P<0.001; and moderate-to-severe anaemia aOR 1.8; 95% CI: 1.4–2.4; P<0.001). Preoperative anaemia was associated with red blood cell transfusion and postoperative morbidity, the causes of which included renal failure, pneumonia, and myocardial infarction.ConclusionsPreoperative anaemia was associated with mortality and morbidity after cardiac surgery. The risk of adverse outcomes increased with anaemia severity. Preoperative anaemia is a potential target for treatment to improve postoperative outcomes. Show less
Arends, B.C.; Blussé van Oud-Alblas, H.J.; Vernooij, L.M.; Verwijmeren, L.; Biesma, D.H.; Knibbe, C.A.J.; ... ; Dongen, E.P.A. van 2021
Aims: Identifying preoperative risk factors in older patients becomes more important to reduce adverse functional outcome. This study investigated the association between preoperative medication... Show moreAims: Identifying preoperative risk factors in older patients becomes more important to reduce adverse functional outcome. This study investigated the association between preoperative medication use and functional decline in elderly cardiac surgery patients and compared polypharmacy as a preoperative screening tool to a clinical frailty assessment.Methods: This sub-study of the Anaesthesia Geriatric Evaluation study included 518 patients aged ≥70 years undergoing elective cardiac surgery. The primary outcome was functional decline, defined as a worse health-related quality of life or disability 1 year after surgery. The association between polypharmacy (i.e. ≥5 prescriptions and <10 prescriptions) or excessive polypharmacy (i.e. ≥10 prescriptions) and functional decline was investigated using multivariable Poisson regression. Discrimination, calibration and reclassification indices were used to compare preoperative screening tools for patient selection.Results: Functional decline was reported in 284 patients (55%) and preoperative polypharmacy and excessive polypharmacy showed higher risks (adjusted relative risk 1.57, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.23-1.98 and 1.93, 95% CI 1.48-2.50, respectively). Besides cardiovascular medication, proton-pump inhibitors and central nervous system medication were significantly associated with functional decline. Discrimination between models with polypharmacy or frailty was similar (area under the curve 0.67, 95% CI 0.61-0.72). The net reclassification index improved when including polypharmacy to the basic model (17%, 95% CI 0.06-0.27).Conclusion: Polypharmacy is associated with functional decline in elderly cardiac surgery patients. A preoperative medication review is easily performed and could be used as screening tool to identify patients at risk for adverse outcome after cardiac surgery. Show less
Vlies, E. van der; Vernooij, L.M.; Erning, F.N. van; Vink, G.R.; Bos, W.J.W.; Portielje, J.E.A.; ... ; M. los 2021
Background: Surgery is the primary treatment for non-metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC) but is omitted in a proportion of older patients. Characteristics and prognosis of non-surgical patients are... Show moreBackground: Surgery is the primary treatment for non-metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC) but is omitted in a proportion of older patients. Characteristics and prognosis of non-surgical patients are largely unknown.Objective: To examine the characteristics and survival of surgical and non-surgical older patients with non-metastatic CRC in the Netherlands.Methods: All patients aged >= 70 years and diagnosed with non-metastatic CRC between 2014 and 2018 were identified in the Netherlands Cancer Registry. Patients were divided based on whether they underwent surgery or not. Three-year overall survival (OS) and relative survival (RS) were calculated for both groups separately. Relative survival and relative excess risks (RER) of death were used as measures for cancer-related survival.Results: In total, 987/20.423 (5%) colon cancer patients and 1.459/7.335 (20%) rectal cancer patients did not undergo surgery. Non-surgical treatment increased over time from 3.7% in 2014 to 4.8% in 2018 in colon cancer patients (P = 0.01) and from 17.1% to 20.2% in rectal cancer patients (P = 0.03). 3 year RS was 91% and 9% for surgical and non-surgical patients with colon cancer, respectively. For rectal cancer patients this was 93% and 37%, respectively. In surgical patients, advanced age (>= 80 years) did not decrease RS (colon; RER 0.9 (0.7-1.0), rectum; RER 0.9 (0.7-1.1)). In non-surgical rectal cancer patients, higher survival rates were observed in patients treated with chemoradiotherapy (OS 56%, RS 65%), or radiotherapy (OS 19%, RS 27%), compared to no treatment (OS 9%, RS 10%).Conclusion: Non-surgical treatment in older Dutch CRC patients has increased over time. Because survival of patients with colon cancer is very poor in the absence of surgery, this treatment decision must be carefully weighed. (Chemo-)radiotherapy may be a good alternative for rectal cancer surgery in older frail patients. (C) 2021 Elsevier Ltd, BASO similar to The Association for Cancer Surgery, and the European Society of Surgical Oncology. All rights reserved. Show less
Vlies, E. van der; Smits, A.B.; M. los; Hengel, M. van; Bos, W.J.W.; Dijksman, L.M.; ... ; Noordzij, P.G. 2020
Objective: To determine the influence of a preoperative multidisciplinary evaluation for frail older patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) on preoperative decision making and postoperative outcomes... Show moreObjective: To determine the influence of a preoperative multidisciplinary evaluation for frail older patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) on preoperative decision making and postoperative outcomes.Background: Surgery is the main treatment for CRC. Older patients are at increased risk for adverse outcomes. For complex surgical cases, a multidisciplinary team (MDT) approach has been suggested to improve postoperative outcome. Evidence is lacking.Methods: Historical cohort study from 2015 to 2018 in surgical patients >= 70 years with CRC. Frailty screening was used to appraise the somatic, functional and psychosocial health status. An MDT weighed the risk of surgery versus the expected gain in survival to guide preoperative decision making and initiate a prehabilitation program. Primary endpoint was the occurrence of a Clavien-Dindo (CD) Grade III-V complication. Secondary endpoints included the occurrence of any complication (CD II-V), length of hospital stay, discharge destination, readmission rate and overall survival.Results: 466 patients were included and 146 (31.3%) patients were referred for MDT evaluation. MDT patients were more often too frail for surgery compared to non-MDT patients (10.3% vs 2.2%, P = .01). Frailty was associated with overall mortality (aOR 2.6 95% CI 1.1-6.1). Prehabilitation was more often performed in MDT patients (74.8% vs 23.4% in non-MDT patients). Despite an increased risk, MDT patients did not suffer more postoperative complications (CD III-V) than non-MDT patients (14.9% vs 12.4%; P = .48). Overall survival was worse in MDT patients (35 (32-37) vs 48 (47-50) months in non-MDT patients; P < .01).Conclusions: Implementation of preoperative MDT evaluation for frail patients with CRC improves risk stratification and prehabilitation, resulting in comparable postoperative outcomes compared to non-frail patients. However, frail patients are at increased risk for worse overall survival. (C) 2020 Published by Elsevier Ltd. Show less
Vlies, E. van der; M. los; Stijns, P.E.F.; Hengel, M. van; Blaauw, N.M.S.; Bos, W.J.W.; ... ; Noordzij, P.G. 2020
Objective To determine the value of preoperative frailty screening in predicting postoperative severe complications and 1-year mortality in patients undergoing radical cystectomy (RC). Patients and... Show moreObjective To determine the value of preoperative frailty screening in predicting postoperative severe complications and 1-year mortality in patients undergoing radical cystectomy (RC). Patients and Methods Prospective cohort single-centre study in patients undergoing RC from September 2016 to December 2017. Preoperative frailty screening was implemented as standard care and was used to guide shared decision-making during multidisciplinary team meetings. Frailty screening consisted of validated tools to assess physical, mental and social frailty. Patients were considered frail when having two or more frailty characteristics. The primary endpoint was the composite of a severe complication (Clavien-Dindo Grade III-V) within 30 days and 1-year all-cause mortality. The secondary endpoints included any complication (Clavien-Dindo II-V), length of stay, readmission within 30 days, and all-cause mortality. Logistic regression analysis and the concordance statistic (c-statistic) were used to describe the association and predictive value of preoperative frailty screening. Results A total of 63 patients were included; 39 (61.9%) were considered frail. Preoperative frailty was associated with a seven-fold increased risk of a severe complication or death 1 year after RC [adjusted odds ratio (OR) 7.36, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.7-31.8; 22 patients]. Compared to the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score and Charlson Comorbidity Index, frailty showed the best model performance (NagelkerkeR(2)0.20) and discriminative ability(c-statistic 0.72,P < 0.01) for the primary endpoint. After adding frailty to the conventional ASA risk score, the c-statistic improved by 11% (P < 0.01). Overall survival was significantly worse in frail patients (23.2 months, 95% CI 18.7-30.1) vs non-frail patients (32.9 months, 95% CI 30.0-35.9;P = 0.01). Conclusions Frail patients undergoing RC are at high risk of postoperative adverse outcomes including death. Preoperative frailty screening improves preoperative risk stratification and may be used to guide patient selection for RC. Show less
