Frequency and Cause of Sudden Death in Surgical Practice

Abstract

A cross sectional observational study was carried out in the Department of General Surgery Mayo Hospital, Lahore during 1999-2001. Main objective of the study was to identify the frequency & causes of sudden death in the surgical practice & to classify patients who are likely candidates for this fatal outcome. A total of 5189 patients were admitted in the ward during this time. Among them 78.1% were admitted from emergency and 26.98% from the out patients department with age ranges between 15->65 and male to female ratio of 51.3%: 38.63%. a total of 3870patients, who fulfill the criteria were included in the study. Among them 125 mortalities occurred in two years time &  only 22 cases were labeled as sudden deaths, out of them 19 were admitted through emergency and only 3 were from the outpatient department. In the study sudden death was labeled as any; occurring within 24hr of in surgical patients who are stable pre of postoperatively on the basis of haemodynamics, clinical evaluation & biochemical investigation with or without the probable cause of death suggested by the medical history. The frequency of sudden death among total admission (3870) was 0.56% and among total mortalities was 17.64%. expected causes in the labeled sudden death cases were Myocardial infarction (27.27%), Pulmonary embolism (18.8%), Multi system organ failure (18.8%), adult respiratory distress syndrome (9.09%), Aspiration pneumonitis (9.09%), Cardiac arrhythmias due to acute renal failure (4.54%), Ruptured pseudo aneurysm (4.54%), Acute drug reaction (4.54%) and Halothane toxicity (4.54%).