Feasibility of non-operative management for patients sustained blunt splenic traumas with concomitant aortic injuries.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to elucidate the treatment approach for blunt splenic injuries concurrently involving the aorta. We hypothesized that non-operative management failure rates would be higher in such cases, necessitating increased hemorrhage control surgeries. METHODS: Data from the Trauma Quality Improvement Program spanning 2017 to 2019 were utilized. All patients with blunt splenic trauma were considered for inclusion. We conducted comparisons between blunt splenic trauma patients with and without thoracic or abdominal aortic injuries to identify any potential disparities in treatment. RESULTS: Among the 32,051 patients with blunt splenic injuries during the study period, 752 (2.3%) sustained concurrent aortic injuries. Following 2:1 propensity score matching, it was determined that the presence of aortic injuries did not significantly affect the utilization of splenic transarterial angioembolization (TAE) (7.2% vs. 8.7%, p = 0.243) or the necessity for splenectomy or splenorrhaphy (15.3% vs. 15.7%, p = 0.853). Moreover, aortic injuries were not a significant factor contributing to TAE failure, regardless of the location or severity of the injury. Patients with simultaneous splenic and aortic injuries required more red blood cell transfusion within first 4 hours (0 ml [0, 900] vs. 0 ml [0, 650], p = 0.001) and exhibited a higher mortality rate (10.6% vs. 7.9%, p = 0.038). CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that patients with concurrent aortic and splenic injuries presented with more severe conditions, higher mortality rates, and extended hospital stays. The presence of aortic injuries did not substantially influence the utilization of TAE or the necessity for splenectomy or splenorrhaphy. Patients of this type can be managed in accordance with current treatment guidelines. Nonetheless, given their less favorable prognosis, they necessitate prompt and proactive intervention.

Long-term survival after major trauma: a retrospective nationwide cohort study from the National Health Insurance Research Database.

BACKGROUND: Most trauma-related studies are focused on short-term survival and complications within the index admission, and the long-term outcomes beyond discharge are mainly unknown. The purpose of this study was to analyze the data from the National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) and to assess the long-term survival of major trauma patients after being discharged from the index admission. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This retrospective, observational study included all patients with major trauma (injury severity score ≥16) in Taiwan from 2003 to 2007, and a 10-year follow-up was conducted on this cohort. Patients aged 18-70 who survived the index admission were enrolled. Patients who survived less than one year after discharge (short survival, SS) and those who survived for more than one year (long survival, LS) were compared. Variables, including preexisting factors, injury types, and short-term outcomes and complications, were analyzed, and the 10-year Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was conducted. RESULTS: In our study, 9896 patients were included, with 2736 in the SS group and 7160 in the LS group. Age, sex, comorbidities, low income, cardiopulmonary resuscitation event, prolonged mechanical ventilation, prolonged ICU length of stay (LOS), and prolonged hospital LOS were identified as the independent risk factors of SS. The 10-year cumulative survival for major trauma patients was 63.71%, and the most mortality (27.64%) occurred within the first year after discharge. CONCLUSION: 27.64% of patients would die one year after being discharged from major trauma. Major trauma patients who survived the index admission still had significantly worse long-term survival than the general population, but the curve flattened and resembled the general population after one year.

Timely surgical fixation confers beneficial outcomes in patients' concomitant flail chest with mild-to-moderate traumatic brain injury: a trauma quality improvement project analysis - a cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Traumatic flail chest results in respiratory distress and prolonged hospital stay. Timely surgical fixation of the flail chest reduces respiratory complications, decreases ventilator dependence, and shortens hospital stays. Concomitant head injury is not unusual in these patients and can postpone surgical timing due to the need to monitor the status of intracranial injuries. Reducing pulmonary sequelae also assists in the recovery from traumatic brain injury and improves outcomes. No previous evidence supports that early rib fixation can improve the outcome of patients with concomitant flail chest and traumatic brain injury. RESEARCH QUESTION: Can early rib fixation improve the outcome of patients with concomitant flail chest and traumatic brain injury? STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Adult patients with blunt injuries from the Trauma Quality Improvement Project between 2017 and 2019 were eligible for inclusion. Patients were divided into two treatment groups: operative and nonoperative. Inverse probability treatment weighting was used to identify the predictors of mortality and adverse hospital events. RESULTS: Patients in the operative group had a higher intubation rate [odds ratio (OR), 2.336; 95% CI, 1.644-3.318; p <0.001), a longer length of stay (coefficient ß , 4.664; SE, 0.789; p <0.001), longer ventilator days (coefficient ß , 2.020; SE, 0.528; p <0.001), and lower mortality rate (OR], 0.247; 95% CI, 0.135-0.454; p <0.001). INTERPRETATION: Timely rib fixation can improve the mortality rate of patients with flail chest and a concomitant mild-to-moderate head injury.

Is It Beneficial to Optimize Vital Signs Before Embolization for Pelvic Fractures? A Dilemma Between Resuscitation and Hemostasis.

PURPOSE: Adequate resuscitation and definitive hemostasis are both important in the management of hemorrhage related to pelvic fracture. The goal of this study was to analyze the relationship between the amount of blood transfused before transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE) and the clinical outcome later in the disease course. METHODS: Patients with pelvic fractures who underwent TAE for hemostasis from January 2018 to December 2019 were studied. The characteristics of patients who received blood transfusions of >2 U (1000 mL) and ≤2 U before TAE were compared. The mortality rate, blood transfusion-related complications, and length of stay were compared between these two groups. RESULTS: Among the 75 studied patients, 39 (52.0%) received blood transfusions of ≤2 U before TAE, and the other 36 (48.0%) patients received blood transfusions of >2 U before TAE. The incidence rates of systemic inflammatory response syndrome, sepsis, and coagulopathy were significantly higher in the >2 U group (97.2% vs 81.1%, P = .027; 50.0% vs 27.0%, P = .045; and 44.4% vs 5.4%, P < .01, respectively). After nonsurvivors were excluded, the >2 U group had a significantly higher proportion (43.8% vs 14.7%, P < .001) of prolonged intensive care unit (ICU) length of stay (7 days or more) and a longer hospital length of stay (33.8 ± 15.1 vs 21.9 ± 94.0, P < .01) than the ≤2 U group. Pre-TAE blood transfusion >2 U serves as an independent risk factor for prolonged ICU length of stay and increased hospital length of stay. CONCLUSION: Early hemostasis for pelvic fracture-related hemorrhage is suggested to prevent pre-TAE blood transfusion-associated adverse effects of blood transfusion.

Spleen size greater than 9.76 cm may impact the treatment strategy for blunt splenic injury in adults - A retrospective analysis of experience at a tertiary trauma center in Taiwan.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: The present study investigated the impact of splenomegaly on the treatment outcomes of blunt splenic injury patients. METHODS: All blunt splenic injury patients were enrolled between 2010 and 2018. The exclusion criteria were age less than 18 years, missing data, and splenectomy performed at another hospital. The patients were divided into two groups based on the presence of splenomegaly, defined as a spleen length over 9.76 cm on axial computed tomography. The primary outcome was the need for hemostatic interventions. RESULTS: A total of 535 patients were included. Patients with splenomegaly had more high-grade splenic injuries (p = 0.007). Hemostatic treatments (p < 0.001) and transarterial embolization (p = 0.003) were more frequently required for patients with splenomegaly. Multivariate analysis showed that male sex (p = 0.023), more packed red blood cell transfusions (p = 0.001), splenomegaly (p = 0.019) and grade 3-5 splenic injury (p < 0.001) were predictors of hemostatic treatment. The failure rate of transarterial embolization was not significantly different between the two groups (p = 0.180). The sensitivity and specificity for splenomegaly in predicting hemostatic procedures were 48.8% and 66.5%, respectively. The positive and negative predictive values were 62.8% and 52.9%, respectively. The overall mortality rate was 3.7%. CONCLUSION: Splenomegaly is an independent predictor for the requirement of hemostatic treatments in blunt splenic injury patients, especially transarterial embolization. Transarterial embolization is as effective for blunt splenic injury patients with splenomegaly as it is for those with a normal spleen.

The role of acute care surgeons in treating rib fractures-a retrospective cohort study from a single level I trauma center.

BACKGROUND: Rib fractures are the most common thoracic injury in patients who sustained blunt trauma, and potentially life-threatening associated injuries are prevalent. Multi-disciplinary work-up is crucial to achieving a comprehensive understanding of these patients. The present study demonstrated the experience of an acute care surgery (ACS) model for rib fracture management from a single level I trauma center over 13 years. METHODS: Data from patients diagnosed with acute rib fractures from January 2008 to December 2020 were collected from the trauma registry of Chang Gung Memorial Hospital (CGMH). Information, including patient age, sex, injury mechanism, Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) in different anatomic regions, injury severity score (ISS), index admission department, intensive care unit (ICU) length of stay (LOS), total admission LOS, mortality, and other characteristics of multiple rib fracture, were analyzed. Patients who received surgical stabilization of rib fractures (SSRF) were analyzed separately, and basic demographics and clinical outcomes were compared between acute care and thoracic surgeons. RESULTS: A total of 5103 patients diagnosed with acute rib fracture were admitted via the emergency department (ED) of CGMH in the 13-year study period. The Department of Trauma and Emergency Surgery (TR) received the most patients (70.8%), and the Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery (CTS) received only 3.1% of the total patients. SSRF was initiated in 2017, and TR performed fixation for 141 patients, while CTS operated for 16 patients. The basic demographics were similar between the two groups, and no significant differences were noted in the outcomes, including LOS, LCU LOS, length of indwelling chest tube, or complications. There was only one mortality in all SSRF patients, and the patient was from the CTS group. CONCLUSIONS: Acute care surgeons provided good-quality care to rib fracture patients, whether SSRF or non-SSRF. Acute care surgeons also safely performed SSRF. Therefore, we propose that the ACS model may be an option for rib fracture management, depending on the deployment of staff in each institute.

Preinjury warfarin does not cause failure of nonoperative management in patients with blunt hepatic, splenic or renal injuries.

BACKGROUND: For patients sustaining major trauma, preinjury warfarin use may make adequate haemostasis difficult. This study aimed to determine whether preinjury warfarin would result in more haemostatic interventions (transarterial embolization [TAE] or surgeries) and a higher failure rate of nonoperative management for blunt hepatic, splenic or renal injuries. METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) from 2003 to 2015. Patients with hepatic, splenic or renal injuries were identified. The primary outcome measurement was the need for invasive procedures to stop bleeding. One-to-two propensity score matching (PSM) was used to minimize selection bias. RESULTS: A total of 37,837 patients were enrolled in the study, and 156 (0.41%) had preinjury warfarin use. With proper 1:2 PSM, patients who received warfarin preinjury were found to require more haemostatic interventions (39.9% vs. 29.1%, p=0.016). The differences between the two study groups were that patients with preinjury warfarin required more TAE than the controls (16.3% vs 8.2%, p = 0.009). No significant increases were found in the need for surgeries (exploratory laparotomy (5.2% vs 3.6%, p = 0.380), hepatorrhaphy (9.2% vs 7.2%, p = 0.447), splenectomy (13.1% vs 13.7%, p = 0.846) or nephrectomy (2.0% vs 0.7%, p = 0.229)). Seven out of 25 patients (28.0%) in the warfarin group required further operations after TAE, which was not significantly different from that in the nonwarfarin group (four out of 25 patients, 16.0%, p = 0.306) CONCLUSION: Preinjury warfarin increases the need for TAE but not surgeries. With proper haemostasis with TAE and resuscitation, nonoperative management can still be applied to patients with preinjury warfarin sustaining blunt hepatic, splenic or renal injuries. Patients with preinjury warfarin had a higher risk for surgery after TAE.

Unstable Hemodynamics is not Always Predictive of Failed Nonoperative Management in Blunt Splenic Injury.

BACKGROUND: The advanced technology of interventional radiology may contribute to a rapid and timely angioembolization for hemostasis. We hypothesized that unstable hemodynamics is no longer an absolute contraindication of nonoperative management (NOM) in blunt splenic injury patients using rapid angioembolization. METHODS: From January 2009 to December 2019, blunt splenic injury patients with unstable hemodynamics [initial pulse >120 beats/min or systolic blood pressure <90 mm Hg] were included. Either emergency surgery or angioembolization was performed for hemostasis because of their unstable status. The characteristics of patients who underwent angioembolization or surgery were compared in each group (all patients, patients with hypotension, patients without response to resuscitation and hypotensive patients without response to resuscitation). RESULTS: A total of 73 patients were included in the current study. With respect to all patients, 68.5% (N = 50) of patients underwent NOM with angioembolization for hemostasis. Patients who underwent angioembolization for hemostasis had a significantly lower base deficit (5.3 ± 3.8 vs. 8.3 ± 5.2 mmol/L, p = 0.006) and a higher proportion of response to resuscitation (82.0% vs. 30.4%, p < 0.001) than did patients who underwent surgery. However, there was no significant difference in the proportion of hypotension (58.0% vs. 65.2%, p = 0.558) between these two groups. There were 44 patients with hypotension, and the angioembolization could be performed in 65.9% (N = 29) of them. Patients who underwent angioembolization had a significantly higher proportion of response to resuscitation than did patients who underwent surgery (89.7% vs. 33.3%, p < 0.001). In hypotensive patients without response to resuscitation (N = 13), 23.1% (N = 3) of the patients underwent angioembolization successfully. There was no significant difference in time to hemostasis procedure between patients who underwent angioembolization or surgery (24.7 ± 2.1 vs. 26.3 ± 16.7 min, p = 0.769). The demographics, vital signs, blood transfusion amount, injury severity, mortality rate and length of stay of patients who underwent angioembolization were not significantly different from patients who underwent surgery in each group. CONCLUSIONS: With a short preparation time of angioembolization, the NOM could be performed selectively for hemodynamically unstable patients with blunt splenic injury. The base deficit serves as an early detector of the requirement of surgical treatment.

Increased long-term pneumonia risk for the trauma-related splenectomized population - a population-based, propensity score matching study.

BACKGROUND: Splenectomy is the life-saving treatment for high-grade spleen trauma. Splenectomized patients are at a significant infection risk. However, the trauma-induced splenectomy results in less incidence of postsplenectomy infection than the hematologic disorder. We conducted a large-scale study to identify the infection rate and management strategy in trauma-related splenic injuries. METHODS: We included patients with the diagnosis of spleen injury in Taiwan from January 2003 to December 2013 by using the National Health Insurance Database and divided them into spleen preserved and splenectomized groups. The demographic factors including age, sex, hospital level, year of injury, trauma mechanism, associated injuries, whether injury severity score ≧16, and comorbidities were extracted. A 1:1 propensity score match was performed, and we analyzed the long-term outcome as the presence of infection-related disease (septicemia, pneumonia, and meningitis) after spleen trauma. The multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify the risk factor for each outcome. RESULTS: During the 11 years included in this study, a total of 8,897 patients with spleen trauma were identified. A total of 3,520 (39.6%) patients were splenectomized, and 5,377 (60.4%) were spleen preserved. After propensity score matching, 3,099 pairs of patients were enrolled for further analysis. In univariate analysis, the incidence of pneumonia is significantly higher in the splenectomized group (8.5% vs 7.0%, P = .037). There was no significant difference in septicemia and meningitis between the 2 groups. In multivariate analysis, splenectomy is an independent risk factor for pneumonia in long-term follow-up. CONCLUSION: Compared with the spleen preserved group, splenectomy is related to an increased likelihood of long-term pneumonia onset but not to an increase in the possibility of other infections.

Video Coaching Improving Contemporary Technical and Nontechnical Ability in Laparoscopic Education.

OBJECTIVE: A video coaching (VC) system has been developed in surgical education. This study compares the educational effect on technical and nontechnical skills of the VC method for teaching laparoscopic surgery. DESIGN: We conducted a prospectively randomized study of an education program to teach laparoscopic procedures. SETTING: The study was performed at the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, a university hospital in Taiwan. PARTICIPANTS: We enrolled sixteen first- or second-year surgical residents.The participants were randomized into VC and conventional teaching (CT) groups, and their surgical skills were judged by the Global Operation Assessment of Laparoscopic Skills (GOALS) and the Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills (OSATS). Nontechnical skills were evaluated by the Non-Technical Skills for Surgeons (NOTSS) assessment and self-efficacy questionnaires (SEQs). After the program, posttraining scores were compared to assess improvements. RESULTS: The 16 enrolled participants finished the entire course and completed all the videos during the study period. Comparing the VC and CT groups, we found that the pretraining GOALS, OSATS, NOTSS and SEQ scores were similar between both groups. However, after training, the OSATS score gain was higher in the VC groupthan in the CT group (9.25 ± 2.05 vs. 6.50 ± 1.51, p=0.009). Regarding nontechnical skills, the NOTSS score improved more in the VC group than in the CT group (5.50 ± 0.93 vs. 4.25 ± 0.89, p=0.015). The SEQ score was also higher in the VC group (32.13 ± 2.10) than in the CT group (29.50 ± 1.77), with a significant difference (p=0.018). CONCLUSION: VC can help surgeons build their expertise using a more accessible method. Additionally, VC can shorten the learning curve and improve self-efficacy, thereby contributing to surgeons' education.

Long-term renal outcomes in patients with traumatic renal injury after nephrectomy: A nationwide cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The long-term renal outcomes of patients who underwent nephrectomy for traumatic renal injury (TRI) have rarely been reported. Therefore, we investigated the impact of nephrectomy for TRI on long-term renal outcomes. METHODS AND MATERIALS: We extracted data from the National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) of Taiwan from 1999 to 2013 and identified patients with TRI. Adverse kidney outcomes (AKOs), including lifelong dialysis and chronic kidney disease (CKD), were chosen as endpoints of the study. RESULTS: A total of 16,320 eligible patients were identified in the NHIRD. The incidence of lifelong dialysis was 0.6% (99/15,789) for patients without nephrectomy, while the incidence was 1.1% (6/531) for nephrectomized patients. Overall, the incidence of AKOs was 2.1% (11/531) in the group that underwent nephrectomy and 1.1% (166/15,789) in the group without nephrectomy. Before matching, differences in overall AKO incidence between the groups were significant, while propensity score matching eliminated this significance. CONCLUSIONS: The results of our study did not indicate that AKOs would occur in patients with TRI who underwent nephrectomy.

Intra-abdominal injury is easily overlooked in the patients with concomitant unstable hemodynamics and pelvic fractures.

INTRODUCTION: Transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE) is usually necessary in the management of hemodynamically unstable patients with concomitant pelvic fractures. Given the critical conditions of such patients, TAE is at times performed only according to the results of a primary evaluation without computed tomographic (CT) imaging. Therefore, the evaluation of associated intra-abdominal injuries (IAIs) might be insufficient. Clinically, some patients have required post-TAE laparotomy due to further deterioration. In this study, we attempted to determine a feasible protocol for post-TAE observation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study focused on patients who received TAE to achieve hemostasis of retroperitoneal hemorrhage and who did not undergo CT imaging due to their unstable hemodynamics. The characteristics of patients with and without associated IAIs requiring post-TAE laparotomy were compared. We also analyzed the effects of the timing of post-TAE CT imaging on patients with IAIs requiring surgery. RESULTS: A total of 41 patients were enrolled in the study. Of these patients, all of whom underwent primary TAE without preprocedure CT imaging; 15 patients (15/41, 36.6%) required post-TAE laparotomy due to further deterioration. Comparisons between the 2 patient groups revealed no significant differences in the rate of endotracheal intubation (80.0% vs 65.4%, P=.480), loss of consciousness (66.7% vs 73.1%, P=.730), or abdominal symptoms (20.0% vs 23.1%, P=1.000). CONCLUSION: In the management of hemodynamically unstable patients with concomitant pelvic fractures, greater attention should be paid to associated IAIs. Early CT imaging is encouraged after the patient's hemodynamic status is stabilized with TAE.