The new timing in acute care surgery (new TACS) classification: a WSES Delphi consensus study.

BACKGROUND: Timely access to the operating room for emergency general surgery (EGS) indications remains a challenge across the globe, largely driven by operating room availability and staffing constraints. The "timing in acute care surgery" (TACS) classification was previously published to introduce a new tool to triage the timely and appropriate access of EGS patients to the operating room. However, the clinical and operational effectiveness of the TACS classification has not been investigated in subsequent validation studies. This study aimed to improve the TACS classification and provide further consensus around the appropriate use of the new TACS classification through a standardized Delphi approach with international experts. METHODS: This is a validation study of the new TACS by a selected international panel of experts using the Delphi method. The TACS questionnaire was designed as a web-based survey. The consensus agreement level was established to be ≥ 75%. The collective consensus agreement was defined as the sum of the percentage of the highest Likert scale levels (4-5) out of all participants. Surgical emergency diseases and correlated clinical scenarios were defined for each of the proposed classes. Subsequent rounds were carried out until a definitive level of consensus was reached. Frequencies and percentages were calculated to determine the degree of agreement for each surgical disease. RESULTS: Four polling rounds were carried out. The new TACS classification provides 6 colour-code classes correlated to a precise timing to surgery, defined scenarios and surgical condition. The WHITE colour-code class was introduced to rapidly (within a week) reschedule cancelled or postponed surgical procedures. Haemodynamic stability is the main tool to stratify patients for immediate surgery or not in the presence of sepsis/septic shock. Fifty-one surgical diseases were included in the different colour-code classes of priority. CONCLUSION: The new TACS classification is a comprehensive, simple, clear and reproducible triage system which can be used to assess the severity of the patient and the surgical disease, to reduce the time to access to the operating room, and to manage the emergency surgical patients within a "safe" timeframe. By including well-defined surgical diseases in the different colour-code classes of priority, validated through a Delphi consensus, the new TACS improves communication among surgeons, between surgeons and anaesthesiologists and decreases conflicts and waste and waiting time in accessing the operating room for emergency surgical patients.

Time to surgery is not an oncological risk factor in HCC patients undergoing liver resection.

PURPOSE: Given limitations of the health care systems in case of unforeseeable events, e.g., the COVID pandemic as well as trends in prehabilitation, time from diagnosis to surgery (time to surgery, (TTS)) has become a research issue in malignancies. Thus, we investigated whether TTS is associated with oncological outcome in HCC patients undergoing surgery. METHODS: A monocentric cohort of 217 patients undergoing liver resection for HCC between 2009 and 2021 was analyzed. Individuals were grouped according to TTS and compared regarding clinical characteristics. Overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) was compared using Kaplan-Meier analysis and investigated by univariate and multivariable Cox regressions. RESULTS: TTS was not associated with OS (p=0.126) or RFS (p=0.761) of the study cohort in univariate analysis. In multivariable analysis age (p=0.028), ASA (p=0.027), INR (0.016), number of HCC nodules (p=0.026), microvascular invasion (MVI; p<0.001), and postoperative complications (p<0.001) were associated with OS and INR (p=0.005), and number of HCC nodules (p<0.001) and MVI (p<0.001) were associated with RFS. A comparative analysis of TTS subgroups was conducted (group 1, ≤30 days, n=55; group 2, 31-60 days, n=79; group 3, 61-90 days, n=45; group 4, >90 days, n=38). Here, the median OS were 62, 41, 38, and 40 months (p=0.602 log rank) and median RFS were 21, 26, 26, and 25 months (p=0.994 log rank). No statistical difference regarding oncological risk factors were observed between these groups. CONCLUSION: TTS is not associated with earlier tumor recurrence or reduced overall survival in surgically treated HCC patients.

Preoperative SARS-CoV-2 infection increases risk of early postoperative cardiovascular complications following noncardiac surgery.

As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic progresses to an endemic phase, a greater number of patients with a history of COVID-19 will undergo surgery. Major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACE) are the primary contributors to postoperative morbidity and mortality; however, studies assessing the relationship between a previous severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and postoperative MACE outcomes are limited. Here, we analyzed retrospective data from 457,804 patients within the N3C Data Enclave, the largest national, multi-institutional data set on COVID-19 in the United States. However, 7.4% of patients had a history of COVID-19 before surgery. When comorbidities, age, race, and risk of surgery were controlled, patients with preoperative COVID-19 had an increased risk for 30-day postoperative MACE. MACE risk was influenced by an interplay between COVID-19 disease severity and time between surgery and infection; in those with mild disease, MACE risk was not increased even among those undergoing surgery within 4 wk following infection. In those with moderate disease, risk for postoperative MACE was mitigated 8 wk after infection, whereas patients with severe disease continued to have elevated postoperative MACE risk even after waiting for 8 wk. Being fully vaccinated decreased the risk for postoperative MACE in both patients with no history of COVID-19 and in those with breakthrough COVID-19 infection. Together, our results suggest that a thorough assessment of the severity, vaccination status, and timing of SARS-CoV-2 infection must be a mandatory part of perioperative stratification.NEW & NOTEWORTHY With an increasing proportion of patients undergoing surgery with a prior history of COVID-19, it is crucial to understand the impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection on postoperative cardiovascular/cerebrovascular risk. Our work assesses a large, national, multi-institutional cohort of patients to highlight that COVID-19 infection increases risk for postoperative major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACE). MACE risk is influenced by an interplay between disease severity and time between infection and surgery, and full vaccination reduces the risk for 30-day postoperative MACE. These results highlight the importance of stratifying time-to-surgery guidelines based on disease severity.

Comparative Outcomes and Surgical Timing for Operative Fragility Hip Fracture Patients during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

The COVID-19 pandemic had wide-reaching effects on healthcare delivery, including care for hip fractures, a common injury among older adults. This study characterized factors related to surgical timing and outcomes, length-of-stay, and discharge disposition among patients treated for operative hip fractures during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, compared to historical controls. A retrospective, observational cohort study was conducted from 16 March-20 May 2020 with a consecutive series of 64 operative fragility hip fracture patients at three tertiary academic medical centers. Historical controls were matched based on sex, surgical procedure, age, and comorbidities. Primary outcomes included 30-day mortality and time-to-surgery. Secondary outcomes included 30-day postoperative complications, length-of-stay, discharge disposition, and time to obtain a COVID-19 test result. There was no difference in 30-day mortality, complication rates, length-of-stay, anesthesia type, or time-to-surgery, despite a mean time to obtain a final preoperative COVID-19 test result of 17.6 h in the study group. Notably, 23.8% of patients were discharged to home during the COVID-19 pandemic, compared to 4.8% among controls (p = 0.003). On average, patients received surgical care within 48 h of arrival during the COVID-19 pandemic. More patients were discharged to home rather than a facility with no change in complications, suggesting an opportunity for increased discharge to home.

Pattern of Time-to-Surgery in Patients With Breast Cancer at Different Stages of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

BACKGROUND: The management of cancer surgeries is under unprecedented challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the breast cancer patients may face a time-delay in the treatment. This retrospective study aimed to present the pattern of time-to-surgery (TTS) and analyze the features of breast cancer patients under the different stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Patients who received surgeries for breast cancers at West China Hospital between February 15, 2020 and April 30, 2020 (the outbreak and post-peak stages), and between March 10, 2021 and May 25, 2021 (the normalization stage) were included. TTS was calculated as the time interval between the pathological diagnosis and surgical treatment of breast cancer patients. And the pandemic was divided into three stages based on the time when the patients were pathologically diagnosed and the severity of pandemic at that time point. TTS, demographic and clinicopathological features were collected from medical records. RESULTS: A total of 367 patients were included. As for demographic features, it demonstrated statistically significant differences in insurance type (p<0.001) and regular screening (p<0.001), as well as age (p=0.013) and menstrual status (p=0.004). As for clinicopathological features, axillary involvement (p=0.019) was a factor that differed among three stages. The overall TTS was 23.56 ± 21.39 days. TTS for patients who were diagnosed during the outbreak of COVID-19 were longer than those diagnosed during pandemic post-peak and normalization stage (p<0.001). Pandemic stage (p<0.001) and excision biopsy before surgery (OR, 6.459; 95% CI, 2.225-18.755; p=0.001) were markedly correlated with the TTS of patients. CONCLUSIONS: TTS of breast cancer patients significantly varied in different stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. And breast cancer patients' daily lives and disease treatments were affected by the pandemic in many aspects, such as health insurance access, physical screening and change of therapeutic schedules. As the time-delay may cause negative influences on patients' disease, we should minimize the occurrence of such time-delay. It is vital to come up with comprehensive measures to deal with unexpected situations in case the pandemic occurs.

Characteristics of Diabetic Foot Ulcer Patients Pre- and During COVID-19 Pandemic: Lessons Learnt From a National Referral Hospital in Indonesia.

BACKGROUND: Diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) is one of the most terrifying diabetic complications for patients, due to the high mortality rate and risk for amputation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many diabetic patients limited their visits to the hospital, resulting in delays for treatment especially in emergency cases. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to compare the characteristics of patients with DFU pre- and during COVID-19 pandemic period. Methods: This study was a retrospective cohort study using foot registry data. We compared our patients' characteristics pre-COVID-19 pandemic period (1 March 2019-28 February 2020) and during COVID-19 pandemic period (1 March 2020-28 February 2021). RESULTS: Cohorts of 84 and 71 patients with DFU pre- and during COVID-19 pandemic period, respectively, were included in this study. High infection grade (66.7% vs 83.1%, P = .032), osteomyelitis event (72.6% vs 87.3%, P = .04), leukocyte count (15 565.0/µL vs 20 280.0/µL, P = .002), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (7.7 vs 12.1, P = .008), waiting time-to-surgery (39.0 h vs 78.5 h, P = .034), and number of major amputation (20.2% vs 39.4%, P = .014) were significantly higher during the COVID-19 pandemic period. CONCLUSION: During the COVID-19 pandemic, patients with DFU had more severe infection, higher proportion of osteomyelitis, longer waiting time for getting surgical intervention, and higher incidence of major amputation.

Hip fracture care during the COVID-19 pandemic: retrospective cohort and literature review.

OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to investigate whether the COVID-19 pandemic has affected hip fracture care at a Level I Trauma hospital. The secondary goal was to summarize the published hip fracture reports during the pandemic. DESIGN: A retrospective cohort study. SETTING: Level I Trauma Center. PATIENTS/PARTICIPANTS: Eighty-six operatively treated hip fracture patients age ≥65 years, occurring from January 17 to July 2, 2020. INTERVENTION IF ANY: N/A. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: We defined 3 phases of healthcare system response: pre-COVID-19 (period A), acute phase (period B), and subacute phase (period C). The primary outcome was 30-day mortality. Clinical outcomes including time to surgery (TTS) and length of stay (LOS) were extracted from the electronic medical record. RESULTS: Twenty-seven patients from Period A, 27 patients from Period B, and 32 patients from Period C were included. The 30-day mortality was not statistically different. The mean TTS was 20.0 +/- 14.3 hours and was the longest in Period C (22.1 +/- 9.8 hours), but the difference was not statistically significant. The mean LOS was 113.0 +/- 66.2 hours and was longest in Period B (120.9 +/- 100.6 hours). However, the difference was not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: The 30-day mortality, TTS, and LOS were not statistically different across multiple phases of pandemic at a level 1 trauma center. Our results suggest that we successfully adapted new protocol changes and continued to provide evidence-based care for hip fracture patients. Our results were comparable with that of other authors around the world.

What is Elective Oncologic Surgery in the Time of COVID-19? A Literature Review of the Impact of Surgical Delays on Outcomes in Patients with Cancer.

BACKGROUND: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has spread beyond those infected with SARS-CoV-2. Its widespread consequences have affected cancer patients whose surgeries may be delayed in order to minimize exposure and conserve resources. METHODS: Experts in each surgical oncology subspecialty were selected to perform a review of the relevant literature. Articles were obtained through PubMed searches in each cancer subtype using the following terms: delay to surgery, time to surgery, outcomes, and survival. RESULTS: Delays in surgery > 4 weeks in breast cancer, ductal carcinoma in situ, T1 pancreatic cancer, ovarian cancer, and pediatric osteosarcoma, negatively impacted survival. Studies on hepatocellular cancer, colon cancer, and melanoma (Stage I) demonstrated reduced survival with delays > 3 months. CONCLUSION: Studies have shown that short-term surgical delays can result in negative impacts on patient outcomes in multiple cancer types as well as in situ carcinoma. Conversely, other cancers such as gastric cancer, advanced melanoma and pancreatic cancer, well-differentiated thyroid cancer, and several genitourinary cancers demonstrated no significant outcome differences with surgical delays.

Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Delayed Skin Cancer Services.

The COVID-19 pandemic has presented a unique set of challenges to cancer care centers around the world. Diagnostic and treatment delays associated with lockdown periods may be expected to increase the total number of avoidable skin cancer deaths. During this unprecedented time, dermatologists have been pressed to balance early surgical interventions for skin cancer with the risk of viral transmission. This article summarizes evidenced-based recommendations for the surgical management of cutaneous melanoma, keratinocyte cancer, and Merkel cell carcinoma during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additional long-term studies are required to determine the effect of COVID-19 on skin cancer outcomes.

Time to surgery in thoracic cancers and prioritization during COVID-19: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has overwhelmed hospital resources worldwide, requiring widespread cancellation of non-emergency operations, including lung and esophageal cancer operations. In the United States, while hospitals begin to increase surgical volume and tackle the backlog of cases, the specter of a "second wave," with a potential vaccine months to years away, highlights the ongoing need to triage cases based upon the risk of surgical delay. We synthesize the available literature on time to surgery and its impact on outcomes along with a critical appraisal of the released triage guidelines in the United States. METHODS: We performed a systematic literature review using PubMed according to preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses guidelines evaluating relevant literature from the past 15 years. RESULTS: Out of 679 screened abstracts, 12 studies investigating time to surgery in lung cancer were included. In stage I-II lung cancer, delayed resection beyond 6 to 8 weeks is consistently associated with lower survival. No identified evidence justifies a 2 cm cutoff for immediate versus delayed surgery. For stage IIIa lung cancer, time to surgery greater than 6 weeks after neoadjuvant therapy is similarly associated with worse survival. For esophageal cancer, 254 abstracts were screened and 23 studies were included. Minimal literature addresses primary esophagectomy, but time to surgery over 8 weeks is associated with lower survival. In the neoadjuvant setting, longer time to surgery is associated with increased pathologic complete response, but also decreased survival. The optimal window for esophagectomy following neoadjuvant therapy is 6 to 8 weeks. CONCLUSIONS: In the setting of the COVID-19 pandemic, timely resection of lung and esophageal cancer should be prioritized whenever possible based upon local resources and disease-burden.

Gastrointestinal Malignancies and the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence-Based Triage to Surgery.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to widespread cancelation of electively scheduled surgeries, including for colorectal, pancreatic, and gastric cancer. The American College of Surgeons and the Society of Surgical Oncology have released guidelines for triage of these procedures. We seek to synthesize available evidence on delayed resection and oncologic outcomes, while also providing a critical assessment of the released guidelines. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted to identify literature between 2005 and 2020 investigating the impact of time to surgery on oncologic outcomes in colorectal, pancreatic, and gastric cancer. RESULTS: For colorectal cancer, 1066 abstracts were screened and 43 papers were included. In primarily resected colon cancer, delay over 30 to 40 days is associated with lower survival. In rectal cancer, time to surgery over 7 to 8 weeks following neoadjuvant therapy is associated with decreased survival. Three hundred ninety-four abstracts were screened for pancreatic cancer and nine studies were included. Two studies demonstrate increased unexpected progression with delayed surgery over 30 days. Out of 633 abstracts screened for gastric cancer, six studies were included. No identified study demonstrated worse survival with increased time to surgery. CONCLUSION: Moderate evidence suggests that delayed resection of colorectal cancer worsens survival; the impact of time to surgery on gastric and pancreatic cancer outcomes is uncertain. Early resection of gastrointestinal malignancies provides the best chance for curative therapy. During the COVID-19 pandemic, prioritization of procedures should account for available evidence on time to surgery and oncologic outcomes.