HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Personal Folders Download to citation manager Author home page(s): Fred H. Edwards Permission Requests Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Edwards, F. H. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Edwards, F. H. Related Collections Professional affairs Related Article

Ann Thorac Surg 2007;83:930
© 2007 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons

---

Original Articles: Cardiovascular

Invited commentary

Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of Florida Health Science Center, Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Shands Jacksonville/University of Florida, 653-2 W 8th St, Jacksonville, FL 32209-6511

(Email: fhe{at}comcast.net).

Risk adjustment is recognized as an essential element in the analysis of surgical outcomes. For this reason the authors [1] are to be commended for their proposal to simplify the process of risk adjustment in valve surgery.

At first glance, additive score methods may appear to have the advantage of simplicity, but a user must still have the point conversion tables and do the math. With the ubiquitous use of computers, it would probably be simpler to just go to The Society of Thoracic Surgeons’ website and enter the data in the online calculator at http://66.89.112.110/STSWebRiskCalc/de.aspx.

A more pressing concern is the narrow patient population. The authors have developed their model using a population entirely from the New York Cardiac Surgery Reporting System. This may possibly be useful for those practicing in New York, but there is no evidence that the models will be useful elsewhere. The contention that the models will serve as a benchmark for valve procedures in other regions is not supported by any objective data.

It is difficult to see an advantage of these models over the existing Society of Thoracic Surgeons’ risk models (see Reference 16), which the authors have curiously failed to mention in their discussion of existing studies that "enable the user to calculate the risk for patients undergoing cardiac valve surgery."

In summary, this group has been a leader in the field of cardiac surgery risk assessment. Their present effort may benefit participants in the New York Cardiac Surgery Reporting System.

	References

Top References

 

1. Hannan EL, Wu C, Bennett EV, et al. Risk index for predicting in-hospital mortality for cardiac valve surgery Ann Thorac Surg 2007;83:921-930.[Abstract/Free Full Text]

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Personal Folders Download to citation manager Author home page(s): Fred H. Edwards Permission Requests Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Edwards, F. H. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Edwards, F. H. Related Collections Professional affairs Related Article