Re-evaluation of Mannheim prognostic index in perforative peritonitis: prognostic role of advanced age. A prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Peritonitis from perforation of abdominal viscera is associated with high mortality. In western countries individuals older than 65 years constitute a significant proportion of the population and intra abdominal infections are more challenging to manage in these aged patients. METHODS: This prospective cohort study included 143 consecutive patients operated on for primary perforative peritonitis. The aim of the study was to assess the prognostic efficacy of Mannheim Peritonitis Index (MPI) in a population with a significant proportion of older patients and to substantiate advanced age as an independent prognostic factor. Patients' informations were collected both on hospitalization and after surgical exploration; severity of peritonitis was evaluated using the MPI. The prognostic value of MPI was compared to older age and other clinical variables. RESULTS: The intra-hospital mortality was 25.2%. According to the MPI score, the ROC curve identified 21 as cut-off value with a sensitivity of 86% and a specificity of 59% in predicting the risk of death. MPI score and age over 80 years old resulted independent predictors of mortality at multivariate analysis. In the subgroup of patients with MPI score≥21, the mortality rate was 46.4% for patients older than 80 years old and 38.3% for younger patients (p=0.07); in patients with MPI score<21, the mortality of those aged more than 80 years reached 33.3% compared to 3.4% for younger patients (p=0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Age older than 80 years is strongly related to major increase in mortality rates and should be taken into account together with the MPI score in planning the surgical approach and the post-operative care.

"Awake" laparoscopy for the evaluation of equivocal penetrating abdominal wounds.

BACKGROUND: Diagnostic laparoscopy is useful for the assessment of equivocal penetrating abdominal wounds, and has become the modality of choice for the evaluation of such wounds at our institution. We hypothesised that, in appropriate patients, diagnostic "awake" laparoscopy (AL) could be performed under local anaesthesia in the emergency department (ED), allowing for expedited discharge and potential cost savings. METHODS: Selected haemodynamically stable patients with penetrating abdominal injury underwent AL. Suitability for AL was at the discretion of the attending surgeon. Identification of peritoneal penetration by AL led to exploratory laparotomy in the operating room. Patients with no evidence of peritoneal penetration were discharged from the ED (ALneg). These patients were matched to a cohort of 24 patients who underwent diagnostic laparoscopy in the OR which was negative for peritoneal penetration (DLneg). Length of stay and hospital charges were compared. RESULTS: Over a 30-month period, 15 patients underwent AL without complication. No peritoneal penetration was found in 11 patients. The remaining four patients underwent exploratory laparotomy, of which two were positive for intra-abdominal injury. Mean time to discharge was 7h in the ALneg group versus 18 h in the DLneg group (p=0.0003). Cost savings on hospital charges averaged 2227 US dollars per patient in the ALneg group compared with the DLneg group. CONCLUSIONS: AL may be safely performed in the ED, allowing for expedited patient discharge. Cost savings are achieved by the avoidance of charges inherent to diagnostic laparoscopy performed in the operating room.

The contribution of laparoscopy in evaluation of penetrating abdominal wounds.

BACKGROUND: Penetrating abdominal wounds are traditionally explored by laparotomy. We investigated prospectively the role of laparoscopy within a defined protocol for management of penetrating abdominal wounds to determine its safety and advantages over traditional operative management. STUDY DESIGN: The study inclusion criteria were: stab and gun shot abdominal wounds, including junction zone injuries; stable vital signs; and absence of contraindications for laparoscopy. Diagnostic end points included detection of peritoneum or diaphragm violation, visceral injuries, and other indications for laparotomy. Systematic examination was undertaken using a multiport technique whenever the peritoneum or diaphragm had been violated. All repairs were done by open operation. RESULTS: A total of 40.6% of patients with penetrating trauma fulfilled study criteria (52 patients). Of these, 33% had no peritoneal penetration; 29% had no visceral injuries despite violation of peritoneum or diaphragm; 38% had visceral injuries, of which 40% (mainly liver and omentum) required no intervention. Twelve patients (23% of total) had open repairs. No missed injuries or death occurred in the study. Overall, 77% of penetrating injuries with stable vital signs avoided exploratory laparotomy. Compared with National Trauma Data Bank information for patients with the same Injury Severity Scores, hospitalization was reduced by more than 55% for the entire series. CONCLUSIONS: Laparoscopy for penetrating abdominal injuries in a defined set of conditions was safe and accurate, effectively eliminating nontherapeutic laparotomy and shortening hospitalization.

A cost-effectiveness evaluation of laparoscopic disposable versus nondisposable infraumbilical cannulas.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To compare the safety and cost-effectiveness of disposable and nondisposable infraumbilical laparoscopic cannulas. DESIGN: Retrospective review of consecutive laparoscopic procedures performed from July 1, 1988, to June 30, 1994. SETTING: A university-affiliated hospital. Patients. The 10,459 consecutive women who underwent laparoscopies. INTERVENTIONS: A 10-mm disposable cannula was used in 529 laparoscopies and a nondisposable cannula in 9930, based on physician preference. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The only intraabdominal injuries associated with insertion of disposable and nondisposable cannulas were bowel injuries in one and three patients, respectively. The injury rates for the instruments were 19 and 3/10,000 cases, respectively, but were not statistically different (P <0.05, Fisher's two-tail exact test). The hospital cost per disposable cannula in 1994 was $63.71; the cost per procedure with the nondisposable cannula was amortized and was less than $1.35, including maintenance. CONCLUSION: Disposable cannulas were not cost effective and were associated with a higher but not statistically significant complication rate. Therefore, the more expensive disposable cannulas are not recommended.

Laparoscopy for triage of penetrating trauma: the decision to explore.

The role of diagnostic laparoscopy in penetrating trauma continues to evolve. We reviewed our experience to determine the effect of laparoscopy on therapeutic laparotomy rates, length of hospital stay, and hospital charges. Laparoscopy was performed on 106 hemodynamically stable patients with penetrating abdominal injuries (66 had gunshot wounds, 40 had stab wounds). All patients with laparoscopically identified peritoneal penetration underwent open laparotomy. At laparoscopy, 41 (39%) had positive findings, whereas 65 (61%) had none. Two patients with retroperitoneal hematomas and one with ecchymosis of the peritoneum were not explored. Thus 68 (64%) did not require laparotomy. Among the 38 who underwent laparotomy, 29 (76%) had positive findings and 9 (24%) had a negative laparotomy. Nineteen patients (50%) had a therapeutic laparotomy. This compares with a therapeutic laparotomy rate of 18% had all 106 patients undergone mandatory laparotomy. Data for length of stay and hospital charges were analyzed. Due to the extended stay associated with tube thoracostomy (n = 21), a subgroup excluding patients with chest tubes was also analyzed. In this subgroup, there was a significant difference in hospital stay between those who had only a laparoscopy and those who underwent a negative laparotomy (2.6 +/- 1.7 vs. 4.7 +/- 1.6, p < 0.01). The average nonsurgical charge for patients who had a negative laparotomy was more than double that for those who had laparoscopy only ($8275 +/- 4692 vs. $3762 +/- 3786, p < 0.01). We conclude that the use of diagnostic laparoscopy to identify peritoneal penetration resulted in an improved therapeutic laparotomy rate as well as significant reduction in hospital stay and hospital charges.