Incidence and impact of adverse effects of medical care on complications in patients who underwent excision of cervical lymph nodes.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence and impact of adverse effects of medical care in patients who underwent excision of cervical lymph nodes. STUDY DESIGN: Data from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample for the years 2009 and 2010 were used. The outcome variables were complications. The independent variables were occurrence of adverse effects of medical care and adverse effects of drugs/medication used in therapeutic use during hospitalization. RESULTS: A total of 48,413 hospitalizations involved excision of cervical lymph nodes. The mean age was 59 years. Males constituted 64.2% of hospitalizations. Adverse effects of medical care occurred in 9.5% of hospitalizations, and adverse effects due to therapeutic use of medications occurred in 1.8%. Frequently occurring complications included postoperative pneumonia (4.2%), hemorrhagic complications (3.5%), other infections (1.7%), cardiac complications (1.5%), bacterial infections (1.5%), respiratory complications (1.4%), nonhealing wounds (1.3%), septicemia (1.2%), and mycoses (1.2%). CONCLUSIONS: Occurrence of adverse effects of medical care was associated with high odds for multiple complications.

Duke Scholars

Author Veerajalandhar Allareddy Pediatrics, Critical Care Medicine