Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42895566›Full record

ArticleEuropean journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society2026

Emergency surgery for blunt abdominal trauma in polytrauma - the impact of time to laparotomy on outcomes.

Gianmaria Rausch, Yannik Kalbas, Sascha Halvachizadeh, Jonin Zumsteg, Alba Shehu, Ester Mikova, Kuno Lehmann, Ladislav Mica, Roman Pfeifer, Hans-Christoph Pape and 3 more

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Article in European journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors.

Gianmaria RauschDepartment of Trauma Surgery, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Ramistr. 100, Zurich, 8091, Switzerland.
Yannik KalbasDepartment of Trauma Surgery, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Ramistr. 100, Zurich, 8091, Switzerland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1550-328X
Sascha HalvachizadehDepartment of Trauma Surgery, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Ramistr. 100, Zurich, 8091, Switzerland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1393-3232
Jonin ZumstegDepartment of Trauma Surgery, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Ramistr. 100, Zurich, 8091, Switzerland.
Alba ShehuDepartment of Trauma Surgery, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Ramistr. 100, Zurich, 8091, Switzerland.
Ester MikovaNorth Bristol NHS Trust, Southmead Hospital, Bristol, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6359-1720
Kuno LehmannDepartment of Surgery, Solothurn Hospital, Solothurn, Switzerland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6177-9543
Ladislav MicaDepartment of Trauma Surgery, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Ramistr. 100, Zurich, 8091, Switzerland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7246-1266
Roman PfeiferDepartment of Trauma Surgery, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Ramistr. 100, Zurich, 8091, Switzerland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1543-3995
Hans-Christoph PapeDepartment of Trauma Surgery, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Ramistr. 100, Zurich, 8091, Switzerland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2059-4980
Valentin NeuhausDepartment of Trauma Surgery, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Ramistr. 100, Zurich, 8091, Switzerland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4012-5628
Felix Karl-Ludwig Klingebiel *Department of Trauma Surgery, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Ramistr. 100, Zurich, 8091, Switzerland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6438-5208
Michel Paul Johan Teuben *Department of Trauma Surgery, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Ramistr. 100, Zurich, 8091, Switzerland. michel.teuben@usz.ch.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0310-4668

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeBlunt abdominal trauma (BAT) is common in polytrauma patients. Emergency surgery is required for haemodynamically significant solid organ injury and intra-abdominal hollow organ injury. The effect of time to surgery on outcomes in patients requiring emergency laparotomy remains uncertain. MATERIALS &

methodsAdult polytrauma patients (ISS > 16) who underwent emergency laparotomy for blunt abdominal trauma between 1996 and 2020 from a trauma registry of a single level one trauma centre were included. Patients were divided into two groups based on the time elapsed from admission to emergency laparotomy: "Super Early" (≤ 60 min) and "Early" (60-180 min). Length of stay (LOS), intensive care unit (ICU)-LOS, ventilation time, re-look operations and mortality were assessed. Adjusted logistic regression was used to determine the independent predictive parameters, including timing of surgery, for mortality.

resultsThe study included 190 polytrauma patients with concomitant blunt abdominal trauma (mean age 42 years (± 17), median ISS of 36 (IQR: 19)). There were 95 patients in each group. Patients in the "Super Early" group had a compromised haemodynamic status and a higher ISS. Liver injury and serous membrane injury were more common in the super early group. The mortality rate was significantly higher in the "Super Early" group (51.6%) compared to the "Early" group (26.3%) (p < 0.001). Death due to haemorrhagic shock was significantly more frequent in the "Super Early" group (36.8%) compared to the "Early" group (13.7%) (p < 0.001). A regression model was adjusted to determine the independent predictors of mortality. Time to emergency laparotomy was not an independent predictor of mortality. However, increased ISS (OR = 1.04, p = 0.049), age (OR = 1.03, p = 0.037) and decreased systolic blood pressure (OR = 0.98, p = 0.025) were found to be significant predictors of mortality.

conclusionThe timing of surgery showed no independent association with mortality as long as an emergency laparotomy was performed within 3 h of admission. The data suggests that patient-specific characteristics, injury severity and clinical status are more important for survival than the timing of an early emergency laparotomy. Future research should focus on determining the role of delayed laparotomy on outcomes in specific subgroups of patients.

Indexed as

Abdominal InjuriesLaparotomyMultiple TraumaTime-to-TreatmentWounds, NonpenetratingAcute Care SurgeryAdultFemaleHumansInjury Severity ScoreLength of StayMaleMiddle AgedRegistriesRetrospective StudiesTime FactorsBlunt abdominal traumaEmergency surgeryLaparotomyPolytraumaTime to surgery

Identifiers

PMID42895566
PMCPMC13680524

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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.