Table 3

Characteristics of non-operated patients according to the complication category between 2003 and 2006

Intervention

Diagnostic

Organ

Dysfunction

Infection

Hospital -

provider

Miscellaneous

Drug

P-value

Number of complications

N = 61 (14%)

N = 86 (20%)

N = 50 (11%)

N = 196 (45%)

N = 35 (8%)

N = 9 (2%)

(Total N = 437)

Nr of patients *

N = 59

N = 73

N = 45

N = 186

N = 35

N = 9

(Total N = 364)

Gender:

ns

Male

N = 25 (42%)

N = 37 (51%)

N = 22 (49%)

N = 105 (56%)

N = 19 (54%)

N = 5 (56%)

Female

N = 34 (58%)

N = 36 (49%)

N = 23 (51%)

N = 81 (44%)

N = 16 (46%)

N = 4 (44%)

Age: †

67.8 ± 12.6

70.7 ± 13.6

63.0 ± 15.7

58.4 ± 20.6

54.6 ± 17.9

69.8 ± 5.6

< 0.001

Diagnosis

< 0.001

(per patient)

General

N = 2 (3%)

N = 13 (18%)

N = 11 (24%)

N = 47 (25%)

N = 12 (34%)

N = 3 (33%)

Traumatology

N = 0 (0%)

N = 18 (25%)

N = 13 (29%)

N = 44 (24%)

N = 7 (20%)

N = 1 (11%)

Vascular surgery

N = 52 (88%)

N = 29 (40%)

N = 6 (13%)

N = 61 (33%)

N = 6 (17%)

N = 4 (44%)

Gastro-intestinal surgery

N = 4 (7%)

N = 10 (14%)

N = 14 (31%)

N = 15 (8%)

N = 5 (14%)

N = 0 (0%)

Oncology

N = 1 (2%)

N = 3 (4%)

N = 1 (2%)

N = 19 (10%)

N = 5 (14%)

N = 1 (11%)

Hospital stay (days) ††

4 (4-7)

8 (4-18)

9 (7-19)

2 (2-4)

2 (1-7)

10 (3-19)

< 0.001

* One patient could have complications in different categories.

† Mean ± standard deviation.

†† Median (interquartile range)_Wilcoxon Signed Rank test

Veen et al. Patient Safety in Surgery 2010 4:11   doi:10.1186/1754-9493-4-11