Evidence map›Paper›PMID 7986140›Full record

ArticleAnnals of surgery1994

The effect of complications on length of stay.

P McAleese, W Odling-Smee

Open access · greenAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Annals of surgery, 1994. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 50 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
50citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
11.8field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
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

50 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 168 citations in OpenAlex.

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  6. Delivering prehabilitation in cancer surgery: a service evaluation at Nottingham University Hospitals.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

P McAleeseDepartment of Surgery, Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast, Northern Ireland.
W Odling-Smee
Royal Victoria Eye and Ear Hospital · IE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesThe authors determined the effect of complications on length of stay (LOS) in surgical patients.

settingFrom 1987 to 1990, in the Professional General Surgical Unit of Royal Victoria Hospital, a retrospective survey was conducted on 5128 consecutively admitted patients with 396 different diagnosis; 228 different operations were examined.

main outcome measuresPatient LOS during a 3-year period in a general surgical ward was analyzed from hospital activity analysis, case notes, ward audit notes, and sepsis audit notes. Readmission rates for complications in patients with a short LOS were examined. Comparison were made between LOS and age, type of surgery, and complication type.

resultsPressure on beds resulting from an increased demand on surgical care decreases patient's hospital LOS; increasing age increases LOS. In general, complications double the average LOS. The authors calculated that a surgical complication can be given a numerical ratio that directly reflects the severity of the complication and increases the patient's LOS. The ration of the infective complication corresponds with the clinical severity of the complication. However, a short LOS may lead to readmission of patients for further treatment. For patients readmitted with complications, 41% had been discharged earlier than the average LOS for their diagnosis.

conclusionLength of stay is increased by complications and can be used to implement discharge planning in general surgical patients. Furthermore, a complication of their treatment can be given a numerical ratio that corresponds to the clinical severity of the complication and the increased LOS in hospital.

Indexed as

AdolescentAdultAgedAged, 80 and overChildHumansLength of StayMiddle AgedPostoperative ComplicationsRetrospective Studies

Identifiers

PMID7986140
PMCPMC1234475
OpenAlexW2085989484

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.