Colectomies performed at a rural A ustralian H ospital: A 7‐year analysis

Little published data exists documenting the reasons for and outcomes of colectomies in rural A ustralia. It remains unclear whether patient characteristics, diagnoses, complications and outcomes differ to metropolitan locations. Methods A retrospective review of prospectively collected data for patients coded with International Classification of Diseases procedure code block 934 and 935 (colectomies) performed at W immera H ealth C are G roup: H orsham C ampus between J uly 2004 and J uly 2011. Records were additionally sought from transfer hospitals. Results Two hundred thirty‐eight colectomies were performed over the 7‐year period: 164 for a colorectal cancer diagnosis, 74 for a non‐colorectal cancer diagnosis. For the colorectal cancer colectomies, 80.5% were elective and 19.5% emergency. There were five (3.0%) intraoperative complications. Postoperatively, there were 16 (9.8%) surgical complications. There was a 3.7% return to theatre rate and a 3.0% unplanned readmission rate. There were no anastomotic leaks. The perioperative mortality rate was 5.5%. For the non‐colorectal cancer colectomies, 85.1% were emergency and 14.9% elective. There were five (6.8%) intraoperative complications. Postoperatively, there were 14 (18.9%) surgical complications. There was a 12.2% return to theatre rate, a 5.4% unplanned readmission rate and three anastomotic leaks. The perioperative mortality rate was 10.8%. Conclusions The outcomes and complications for colectomies appear similar to the accepted standard of surgery in other rural and metropolitan centres. Areas have been identified for improved surgical performance at W immera H ealth C are G roup: H orsham C ampus.