Hospital tests and patient related factors influencing time-to-theatre in 1000 cases of suspected appendicitis: a cohort study

Background: Acute appendicitis is increasingly being managed in the setting of a dedicated emergency theatre. However understanding of hospital factors that influence time-to-theatre (TTT) is poor. Thus, the aim of this study is to identify factors that influence TTT and to observe the effect of prolonged TTT on patient outcome. Methods: A retrospective review of an electronic prospectively maintained database was performed over a 2 year period. Factors thought to influence TTT were highlighted. A delay was defined as TTT >8 hours. Data analysis was performed using SPSS 20. Results: 1,000 cases of suspected acute appendicitis were identified. Median age was 19 years. Appendicectomy was performed in 90.7%. 68.1% underwent laparoscopic appendicectomy. Overall mean TTT was 12 hours, 27 minutes. There was a significant association between delayed TTT and female gender (p = 0.017), older age (p = 0.001), pre-operative radiology (
Source: World Journal of Emergency Surgery - Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: Source Type: research