ArticleCureus2026
Comparison of Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II, Physiological and Operative Severity Score for the Enumeration of Mortality and Morbidity (POSSUM), and Surgical Apgar Score in Patients Undergoing Emergency Laparotomy.
Article in Cureus, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND
aimSurgical risk scoring is essential for predicting postoperative outcomes, guiding ICU admission, and planning interventions. In emergency laparotomies, appropriate scoring systems aid prognostication, risk‑adjusted audits, and quality improvement initiatives. This study aimed to compare the accuracy of the surgical Apgar score (SAS), Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II, and Physiological and Operative Severity Score for the Enumeration of Mortality and Morbidity (POSSUM) in predicting morbidity and mortality among patients undergoing emergency laparotomy at Kempegowda Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS) Hospital, Bangalore.
methodsThis prospective observational study included 65 adult patients undergoing emergency laparotomy between July 2023 and December 2024. Patients were assessed using parameters specific to SAS, APACHE II, and POSSUM. Postoperative complications were monitored on days three, seven, and 15, and graded using the modified Clavien-Dindo classification. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to evaluate predictive validity.
resultsMorbidity occurred in 16 patients (24.6%) and mortality in 12 patients (18.5%). Higher SAS values were associated with fewer complications and lower mortality, whereas patients who died had notably lower scores. APACHE II demonstrated strong predictive accuracy, with higher scores significantly associated with adverse outcomes. POSSUM also effectively predicted morbidity and mortality, though with a tendency to overestimate risk in some cases.
conclusionAll three scoring systems demonstrated predictive utility. APACHE II was the most reliable predictor of mortality, POSSUM showed greater accuracy for morbidity, and SAS, despite its simplicity, proved effective for both morbidity and mortality. Its ease of use supports SAS as a practical tool for guiding postoperative care decisions.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.