Clinical Characteristics and Outcomes of Surgical Patients Admitted to Intensive Care Units.

Background Patients are often admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) after surgery for advanced monitoring and management that are usually unavailable in general wards. This study aimed to examine the characteristics of postoperative patients admitted to ICUs and their outcomes. Methods A retrospective observational study was conducted across 18 ICUs in Nepal from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2023. Data were obtained from the registry maintained by the Nepal Intensive Care Research Foundation (NICRF). Surgical patients aged over 16 years with ICU stays of at least 8 hours were included. Demographics, types of surgical procedures, comorbidities, readmission rates, and mortality rates were analyzed. Continuous variables were reported as mean ± standard deviation or median with interquartile range, while categorical variables were expressed as frequencies and percentages. Results Of the 29,148 patients admitted to the ICUs during the study period, 4,755 (16.31%) were surgical patients, and 4,509 were included in the analysis after exclusions. Among these, 2,973 (65.9%) were admitted directly from operating theaters, while 1,080 (23.9%) were admitted from wards. The average vital signs and blood test results were within normal ranges. The readmission rate was higher for patients admitted from wards (11%) compared to those from operating theaters (3.66%). Overall mortality for surgical patients was 9%, with significantly higher mortality among those admitted from wards (15.8%) than from operating theaters (6%). Conclusion Surgical patients constituted a substantial proportion of ICU admissions. Patients admitted directly from operating theaters experienced better outcomes, including lower readmission and mortality rates, compared to those admitted from wards. These findings underscore the need for targeted interventions to improve outcomes for patients transferred from wards.