Comparison of the Clinical Frailty Score (CFS) to the National Emergency Laparotomy Audit (NELA) risk calculator in all patients undergoing emergency laparotomy

Palaniappan, S., Soiza, R. L., Duffy, S., Moug, S. J. and Myint, P. K. (2022) Comparison of the Clinical Frailty Score (CFS) to the National Emergency Laparotomy Audit (NELA) risk calculator in all patients undergoing emergency laparotomy. Colorectal Disease, 24(6), pp. 782-789. (doi: 10.1111/codi.16089) (PMID:35167177) (PMCID:PMC9311201)

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Abstract

Background: There is evolving evidence that pre-operative frailty predicts outcomes of older adults undergoing emergency laparotomy (EmLap). We assessed frailty scoring in an emergency surgical population that included patients of all ages and then compared to an established peri-operative prognostic score. Methods: Data from the prospective Emergency Laparoscopic and Laparotomy Scottish Audit (ELLSA; November 2017-October 2018) was used. All adults over 18 were included. Frailty was measured using 7-point Clinical Frailty Score (CFS). Outcome measures: 30-day mortality, hospital length of stay (LOS), 30-day re-admission. Areas under the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curves were calculated for CFS (1-7) and compared to the National Emergency Laparotomy Audit (NELA) Score with Forest plots used to compare 30-day mortality across CFS and NELA categories. Results: 2246 patients [median age 65 years (IQR 51-75); female 51%] underwent EmLap (60% for colorectal pathology). 10.6% were frail pre-operatively (≥CFS 5). As CFS increased so did 30-day mortality (2.1% CFS1 to 25.3% CFS6&7; ꭓ278.2, p<0.001) and median LOS (10 days CFS1 to 20 days CFS6&7; p<0.001). Readmission rates did not differ significantly across CFS. ROC (95% CI) for mortality was 0.71 (0.65-0.77) for CFS and 0.84 (0.78-0.89) for NELA. Addition of CFS to NELA did not increase ROC value. Conclusions: This study supports the prognostic role of frailty in the emergency surgical setting, finding increasing frailty to be associated with increased mortality and longer LOS in adults of all ages. Although NELA performed better, CFS remained predictive and has the advantage of being calculated pre-operatively to aid decision-making and treatment planning.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Moug, Ms Susan
Authors: Palaniappan, S., Soiza, R. L., Duffy, S., Moug, S. J., and Myint, P. K.
College/School:College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Medicine, Dentistry & Nursing
Journal Name:Colorectal Disease
Publisher:Wiley
ISSN:1462-8910
ISSN (Online):1463-1318
Published Online:15 February 2022
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2022 The Authors
First Published:First published in Colorectal Disease 24(6): 782-789
Publisher Policy:Reproduced under a Creative Commons License

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