To better understand how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected surgical trainees' and early-career surgeons' professional and personal experiences, a survey of the membership of the American College of ...Surgeons (ACS) Resident and Associate Society (RAS) and Young Fellows Association (YFA) was performed.
An anonymous online survey was disseminated to members of RAS and YFA. Descriptive analyses were performed and factors associated with depression and burnout were examined with univariate and multivariable stepwise logistic regression.
Of the RAS/YFA membership of 21,385, there were 1,160 respondents. The majority of respondents (96%) reported the COVID-19 pandemic having a negative impact on their clinical experience, with 84% of residents reporting a > 50% reduction in operative volume and inability to meet minimum case requirements. Respondents also reported negative impacts on personal wellness. Nearly one-third reported inadequate access to personal protective equipment, and depression and burnout were pervasive (≥21% of respondents reported yes to every screening symptom). On multivariable analysis, female sex (odds ratio OR 1.54 for depression, OR 1.47 for burnout) and lack of wellness resources (OR 1.55 for depression, OR 1.44 for burnout) predicted depression and burnout. Access to adequate personal protective equipment was protective against burnout (OR 0.52).
These data demonstrate a significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the lives of residents and early-career surgeons. Actionable items from these data include mitigation of burnout and depression through increasing personal protective equipment access and provision of wellness programs, with a particular focus on high-risk groups.
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Traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients present on a spectrum from hypocoagulability to hypercoagulability, depending on the injury complexity, severity, and time since injury. Prior studies have found ...a unique coagulopathy associated with TBI using conventional coagulation assays such as INR; however, few studies have assessed the association of TBI and coagulopathy using viscoelastic assays that comprehensively evaluate the coagulation in whole blood. This study aims to reevaluate the TBI-specific trauma-induced coagulopathy using arrival thrombelastography. Because brain tissue is high in key procoagulant molecules, we hypothesize that isolated TBI is associated with procoagulant and hypofibrinolytic profiles compared with injuries of the torso, extremities, and polytrauma, including TBI.
Data are from the prospective Trauma Activation Protocol study. Activated clotting time (ACT), angle, maximum amplitude (MA), 30-minute percent lysis after MA (LY30), and functional fibrinogen levels (FFLEV) were recorded. Patients were categorized into isolated severe TBI (I-TBI), severe TBI with torso and extremity injuries (TBI + TORSO/EXTREMITIES), and isolated torso and extremity injuries (I-TORSO/EXTREMITIES). Poisson regression was used to adjust for multiple confounders.
Overall, 572 patients (48 I-TBI, 45 TBI + TORSO/EXTREMITIES, 479 I-TORSO/EXTREMITIES) were included in this analysis. The groups differed in INR, ACT, angle, MA, and FFLEV but not in 30-minute percent lysis. When compared with I-Torso/Extremities, after adjustment for confounders, severe I-TBI was independently associated with ACT less than 128 seconds (relative risk RR, 1.5; 95% confidence interval CI, 1.1-2.2), angle less than 65 degrees (RR, 2.2; 95% CI, 1.4-3.6), FFLEV less than 356 (RR, 1.7; 95% CI, 1.2-2.4) but not MA less than 55 mm, hyperfibrinolysis, fibrinolysis shutdown, or partial thromboplastin time (PTT) greater than 30.
Severe I-TBI was independently associated with a distinct coagulopathy with delayed clot formation but did not appear to be associated with fibrinolysis abnormalities. Low fibrinogen and longer ACT values associated with I-TBI suggest that early coagulation factor replacement may be indicated in I-TBI patients over empiric antifibrinolytic therapy. Mechanisms triggering coagulopathy in TBI are unique and warrant further investigation.
Retrospective cohort study, prognostic, level III.
The COVID-19 pandemic prodigiously impacted the healthcare system and created an unprecedented public health emergency.1,2 In the United States, this crisis uncovered a brittle supply of personal ...protective equipment (PPE), resulting in a national shortage of masks, gowns, gloves and other PPE, putting healthcare workers at risk of occupational exposure to COVID-19.3 Surgical trainees were not spared. In early 2021, the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Resident and Associate Society (RAS) and Young Fellows Association (YFA) published the results of a national survey that found that a third of residents reported not having adequate access to PPE; further, being asked to provide one's own PPE was an independent predictor of depression and burnout and having access to adequate PPE was protective against burnout.4 A subsequent qualitative study of the surgical resident's experience during the pandemic revealed a “frantic” environment, with nagging uncertainty of PPE availability.5 In response to these data, the ACS-RAS designed a weekly rolling survey to its membership to better characterize PPE inadequacies and identify if PPE inability still remains a challenge in the time following the initial surge of COVID-19 in the United States. ...residents expressed a general feeling of lack of safety, feeling “exploited” and “sacrificed.”
The Surgical Apgar Score (SAS) is a 10-point validated score comprised of three intraoperative variables (blood loss, lowest heart rate, and lowest mean arterial pressure). Lower scores are worse and ...predict major postoperative complications. The SAS has not been applied in emergency general surgery (EGS) but may help guide postoperative disposition. We hypothesize that SAS can predict complications in EGS patients undergoing a laparotomy.
We performed a retrospective review of adult patients at a single, quaternary care center who underwent an exploratory laparotomy for EGS conditions within 6 hours of surgical consultation from 2015 to 2019. Patients were grouped by whether they experienced a postoperative complication (systemic, surgical, and/or death). Multivariable regression was performed to predict complications, accounting for SAS and other statistically significant variables between groups. Using this model, predicted probabilities of a complication were generated for each SAS.
The cohort comprised 482 patients: 32.8% (n = 158) experienced a complication, while 67.2% (n = 324) did not. Patients with complications were older, frailer, more often male, had worse SAS (6 vs. 7, p < 0.0001) and American Society of Anesthesiologists scores, and higher rates of perforated hollow viscus ( p = 0.0003) and open abdomens ( p < 0.0001). On multivariable regression, an increasing SAS independently predicted less complications (adjusted odds ratio, 0.85; 95% confidence interval, 0.75-0.96; p = 0.009). An SAS ≤4 was associated with a 49.2% predicted chance of complications, greater rates of septic shock (9.7% vs. 3%, p = 0.01), respiratory failure (20.5% vs. 10.8%, p = 0.02), and death (24.1% vs. 7.5%, p < 0.0001). An SAS ≤ 4 did not correlate with surgical complications ( p = 0.1).
The SAS accurately predicts postoperative complications in EGS patients undergoing urgent laparotomy, with an SAS ≤ 4 identifying patients at risk for septic shock, respiratory failure, and mortality. This tool can aid in rapidly determining postoperative disposition and resource allocation.
Therapeutic/Care Management; Level IV.
The mechanisms underlying trauma-induced coagulopathy remain elusive. Hyperfibrinolysis has been linked to increased plasminogen activation and antiprotease consumption; however, the mechanistic ...players in its counterpart, fibrinolysis shutdown, remain unclear. We hypothesize that thrombin-activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor (TAFI) plays a major role in fibrinolytic shutdown after injury.
As part of this observational cohort study, whole blood was collected from trauma activation patients at a single, level 1 trauma center. Citrated rapid thrombelastography and the following enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays were conducted: thrombin, antithrombin, thrombin-antithrombin complex, TAFI, plasminogen, antiplasmin, plasmin-antiplasmin (PAP), tissue plasminogen activator, plasminogen activator inhibitor 1, and tissue plasminogen activator-plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 complex. Univariate and cluster analysis were performed.
Overall, 56 patients (median age, 33.5 years; 70% male) were included. The majority (57%) presented after blunt mechanism and with severe injury (median New Injury Severity Score, 27). Two clusters of patients were identified: Group 1 (normal fibrinolysis, n = 21) and Group 2 (fibrinolysis shutdown, n = 35). Group 2 had significantly lower fibrinolysis with a median LY30 of 1.1% (interquartile range IQR, 0.1-1.9%) versus 2.1% (IQR, 0.5-2.8%) in Group 1; while the median LY30 was within physiologic range, 45% of patients in Group 2 were in shutdown (vs. 24% in Group 1, p = 0.09). Compared with Group 1, Group 2 had significantly higher PAP (median, 4.7 IQR, 1.7-9.3 vs. 1.4 1.0-2.1 μg/mL in Group 1; p = 0.002) and higher TAFI (median, 152.5% IQR, 110.3-190.7% vs. 121.9% IQR, 93.2-155.6%; p = 0.04). There was a strong correlation between PAP and TAFI ( R2 = 0.5, p = 0.0002).
The presented data characterize fibrinolytic shutdown, indicating an initial plasmin burst followed by diminished fibrinolysis, which is distinct from hypofibrinolysis (inadequate plasmin burst and fibrinolysis). After an initial thrombin and plasmin burst (increased PAP), fibrinolysis is inhibited, mediated in part by increased TAFI.
Trauma‐induced coagulopathy (TIC) is one of the leading causes of preventable death in injured patients. Consequently, it is imperative to understand the mechanisms underlying TIC and how to mitigate ...this mortality. An opportunity for advancement stems from the awareness that coagulation demonstrates a strong sex‐dependent effect. Females exhibit a relative hypercoagulability compared to males, which persists after injury and confers improved outcomes. The mechanisms underlying sex dimorphisms in coagulation and its protective effect after injury have yet to be elucidated. This review explores sex dimorphisms in enzymatic hemostasis, fibrinogen, platelets, and fibrinolysis, with implications for resuscitation of patients with TIC.
Sex dimorphisms in coagulation have significant implications in understanding and treating trauma‐induced coagulopathy. Don't miss this review by Coleman et al. on the clinical implications of sex‐specific differences in hemostatic capacity.
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