OTO: Postdischarge Complications Predict Reoperation and Mortality after Otolaryngologic Surgery

This is the first study of overall procedure-specific post-discharge complications (PDCs) after inpatient otolaryngology surgery. The authors studied over 48.000 adults from the American College of Surgeons National Quality Improvement Program database who underwent inpatient otolaryngologic surgery from 2005 to 2011, analyzing complications, reoperation, and mortality in the first 30 days after the procedure. The highest rates of PDCs were for laryngectomy (8.0%), lip surgery (7.4%), and mouth surgery (4.1%), and consisted primarily of infections (surgical site, pneumonia, urinary tract) and less often venous thromboembolic events. Factors associated with PDCs were increasing age, prolonged operative time, hospital stay more than 1 day, and American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) class 3 or higher. Implications of these findings for patient counseling are discussed in the podcast.