Outcomes of emergency surgical interventions in right-sided colonic cancer: nationwide population-based study based on Danish Colorectal Cancer Group register

AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate the trends in morbidity and mortality of patients with right-sided colonic cancer who had an emergency surgical procedure in Denmark after the introduction of quality index parameters. METHODS: This was a retrospective nationwide study based on a prospectively maintained Danish Colorectal Cancer Group database focused on right-sided colonic cancer in the interval from 1 May 2001 to 30 April 2018, who underwent emergency surgical intervention (within 48 h of hospital admission). The primary objective was to investigate the trends in morbidity and mortality throughout the study years. Multivariable estimates were adjusted for age, sex, smoking status, alcohol consumption, ASA score classification, tumour localization, type of access to abdominal cavity, surgeon’s grade of specialization, and metastatic disease. RESULTS: Out of 2839 patients, a total of 2740 patients fulfilled the inclusion criteria, of whom 2464 underwent right or transverse colon resection (89.9 per cent). The 30-day and 90-day postoperative mortality rates were significantly reduced over the time of the study (OR 0.943, 95 per cent c.i. 0.922 to 0.965, P < 0.001 and OR 0.953, 95 per cent c.i. 0.934 to 0.972, P < 0.001 respectively); however, the complication rates did not follow this trend. Older patients (OR 1.032, 95 per cent c.i. 1.009 to 1.055, P = 0.005) and patients with high ASA scores (OR 1.61, 95 per cent c.i. 1.422 to 1.830, P < 0.001) had higher rates of severe grade 3b postoperative complications. A stoma was constructed in 276 patients (10 per cent), whereas a stent was used in only eight patients. Defunctioning procedures, including stoma construction or colonic stenting (without oncological resection), did not reduce the risk of complications compared with that of definitive surgery. CONCLUSION: The 30-day and 90-day postoperative mortality rates were significantly reduced over the time of the study. Age and ASA score were risk factors for severe postoperative complications.