Underfunding may contribute to higher mortality for patients in Latin America receiving surgery

Professor Rupert Pearse, NIHR Professor of Intensive Care Medicine from Queen Mary’s William Harvey Research Institute, and an international group of colleagues examined the records of 22,000 patients undergoing inpatient surgery across 17 Latin American countries. Their study found that 1 in 7 people developed complications after surgery, with 1 in 7 of these dying without ever leaving the hospital.

The study found that the different hospitals used their intensive care resources inconsistently, with 1 in 3 patients who died never being admitted to intensive care units at all. The deterioration of health of these most vulnerable patients often went unrecognised by their medical teams, it was found. Infections were the most common complication after surgery, highlighting the urgent need for better post-operative infection control. The researchers identified that significant improvements are needed in the post-operative care processes for surgical patients in Latin America.

Professor Pearse said: “While the rate of patients developing post-surgical complications was similar in Latin America to that seen in other countries around the world, the proportion patients who die following a complication was significantly higher. This suggests a need for more targeted care on post-surgical wards to detect and treat problems like infection and bleeding early before patients become too unwell. This policy shift will need complex changes to healthcare systems across the region. We recommend further research to investigate these contexts for surgical care.”

‘Patient outcomes after surgery in 17 Latin American countries (LASOS): a 7 day prospective cohort study’ is published in Lancet Global Health.