Key result
Emergency laparotomy futility affects ~1% of patients, primarily defined as death within 72 hours.
Why the study?
Seven guiding principles define medical futility, but they have been relatively unexplored in the context of emergency surgery.
How is surgical futility defined and predicted in patients undergoing emergency laparotomy?
Population
Three cohort studies with a total of 105 157 patients relevant to futility in emergency laparotomy
Design
Scoping review using the Arksey and O'Malley framework
Authors
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Narrow short-term mortality definitions predominate in emergency laparotomy futility; leaves open standardized inclusion of patient wishes and longer-term outcomes.
How is surgical futility defined and predicted in patients undergoing emergency laparotomy?
There is a significant lack of comprehensive research on surgical futility in emergency laparotomy, with existing studies focusing solely on short-term mortality rather than broader principles including patient wishes.
Javanmard‐Emamghissi et al. (2022) conducted a review in Emergency laparotomy (n=105,157). Emergency laparotomy was evaluated on Quantitative futility (death within 48 or 72 hours of surgery). A scoping review of 105,157 patients undergoing emergency laparotomy identified 1,114 cases of surgical futility, primarily defined quantitatively as death within 48 to 72 hours post-surgery.