The impact of abdominal aortic aneurysm surgery on intensive care unit resources in an Irish tertiary centre.

BACKGROUND: The potential impact of surgical service reconfiguration on intensive care unit (ICU) resources needs to be assessed. AIMS: To determine the resources required to provide post-operative ICU care to patients undergoing open abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair or endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) at a specialist centre in the HSE South area METHODS: For 198 patients, we calculated: (1) ICU bed-days; (2) organ support required; and (3) monetary cost of ICU care. RESULTS: In total, 82.8% (101/122) of patients undergoing open AAA repair required post-operative ICU care (52 emergency and 49 elective). Emergency cases required more ICU bed-days (median 4.2 vs. 1.9, p<0.0005) and were more likely to require ventilation (odds ratio, OR 11.7, p<0.0001), inotropes (OR 3.1, p=0.01) or enteral nutrition (OR 23.3, p<0.0001). Mean cost per patient was €3,956 for elective cases and €16,419 for emergency cases. No patient required ICU admission after EVAR (n=76). CONCLUSIONS: Open AAA surgery places significant demands on ICU resources. The planned reconfiguration of surgical services in Ireland must provide for parallel investment in ICU facilities and expertise.

Managing chronic disease in Ireland: hospital admission rates and clinical outcomes in a large ulcerative colitis population.

BACKGROUND: Health care planning demands a detailed knowledge of the course of chronic diseases in the Irish population. This study describes hospital admission rates, medication use and outcomes in a large cohort of patients with ulcerative colitis attending a tertiary referral centre in Ireland. METHOD: Four hundred and twenty-four patients who attended during the 18-year period from January 1991 to January 2009 were identified. Baseline demographics, hospital admission, medications required, extent of colitis and date of colectomy were recorded. RESULTS: More than half (55.4%) of the patients were managed exclusively in an outpatient setting throughout diagnosis and follow-up. Systemic corticosteroids, thiopurines and infliximab were required by 70, 29.5 and 5% of the patients, respectively. Overall 5-year colectomy rate due to failure of medical therapy was 15.8%. Independent predictors of colectomy were hospital admission at first presentation (odds ratio 3.6, p < 0.0001) and pancolitis at diagnosis (odds ratio 2.3, p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: The majority of patients with colitis have an uncomplicated disease course and do not require thiopurines, biologic agents or hospital admission. Principal management at a primary care level may be appropriate in many cases. Colectomy rates at a specialist centre in Ireland compare favourably with international figures.

Crohn's disease: factors associated with exposure to high levels of diagnostic radiation.

AIMS: Exposure to diagnostic radiation may be associated with increased risk of malignancy. The aims of this study were to (1) examine patterns of use of imaging in Crohn's disease; (2) quantify the cumulative effective dose (CED) of diagnostic radiation received by patients; and (3) identify patients at greatest risk of exposure to high levels of diagnostic radiation. METHODS: 409 patients with Crohn's disease were identified at a tertiary centre. CED was calculated retrospectively from imaging performed between July 1992 and June 2007. High exposure was defined as CED>75 mSv, an exposure level which has been reported to increase cancer mortality by 7.3%. Complete data were available for 399 patients. 45 were excluded (20 attended outside the study period, 25 were primarily managed at other centres). RESULTS: Use of computed tomography increased significantly and accounted for 77.2% of diagnostic radiation. Mean CED was 36.1 mSv and exceeded 75 mSv in 15.5% of patients. Factors associated with high cumulative exposure were: age <17 years at diagnosis (hazard ratio 2.1, confidence interval (CI) 1.1 to 4.1), upper gastrointestinal tract disease (odds ratio (OR) 2.4, CI 1.2 to 4.9), penetrating disease (OR 2.0, CI 1.0 to 3.9) and requirement for intravenous steroids (OR 3.7, CI 2.0 to 6.6); infliximab (OR 2.3, CI 1.2 to 4.4); or multiple (>1) surgeries (OR 2.7, CI 1.4 to 5.4). CONCLUSIONS: Identifiable subsets of patients with Crohn's disease are at risk of exposure to significant amounts of diagnostic radiation. Given the background risk of neoplasia and exposure to potentially synergistic agents such as purine analogues and other immune modulators, specialist centres should develop low-radiation imaging protocols.