Clavien System Classification of Complications Developed following Laparoscopic Urological Operations Applied in our Clinic

OBJECTIVES: We analyzed the complications of laparoscopic surgery using Clavien system classification on 396 urological procedures performed at our institution between 2005-2009. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed, focusing on complications associated with 396 laparoscopic surgeries performed between 2005 and 2009, which included radical and simple nephrectomy (n=188), partial nephrectomy (n=29), pyeloplasty (n=78), sacrocolpopexy (n=16) and radical prostatectomy (n=85). Complication data were tabulated according to the case number, procedure type, patient age, the American Society of Anesthesiologists score (ASA), Clavien classification system and annual complication rate during this study. Statistical analysis was performed with Fisher’s exact and chi-square tests. RESULTS: A total of 75 patients had complications during the study period. Thus, the total postoperative complication rate was 18.9%. When sub-stratified to various surgical procedures, complication rates were: laparoscopic radical and simple nephrectomy (11.1%), laparoscopic partial nephrectomy (37.9%), laparoscopic pyeloplasty (15.3%), laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy (18.7%) and laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (32.9%). When the complications were classified according to Clavien Classification System stage 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, complication rate was observed in 11.6%, 13.8%, 1.2%, 1%, and 0% of patients, respectively. A correlation was not identified between ASA score and complication rate (p=0.02). CONCLUSION: The data presented here would enable us to compare our complication rates objectively with world literature.