Abstract
Background
Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is frequently an ambulatory procedure, but some patients are best admitted for a brief hospital stay. In this study, we compared the functional health status, symptoms, and outcomes of patients undergoing ambulatory elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy to those with brief hospital admission. The purpose was to assess patient satisfaction and to identify factors that might assist in selecting patients for ambulatory vs short-stay operations.
Methods
A total of 140 patients scheduled for elective cholecystectomy completed the SF-36 health survey and provided additional information regarding symptoms preoperatively, at 2 months, and at 6 months after operation.
Results
All patients had symptomatic gallstones; 76 were admitted to the hospital, and 64 were ambulatory. Admitted patients reported more emotional role limitations on preoperative SF-36. They also reported symptoms of depression more often. Patients in both groups were equally relieved of symptoms of pain, nausea, vomiting, and tenderness. Satisfaction with care was similar for both groups; however, at 2 and 6 months, admitted patients continued to report significantly poorer functional health status than ambulatory patients.
Conclusion
A reliable, reproducible measure of functional health status, such as the SF-36, may be useful for identifying patients who are appropriate for short-stay hospital admission after laparoscopic cholecystectomy as part of a decision process that tries to optimize outcomes while utilizing resources efficiently.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bates T, Ebbs SR, Harrison M, A’Hern RP (1991) Influence of cholecystectomy on symptoms. Br J Surg 78: 964–967
Fenster LF, Lonborg R, Thirlby RC, Traverso LW (1995) What symptoms does cholecystectomy cure? Am J Surg 169: 533–538
Fiorillo MA, Davidson PG, Firoillo M, D’Anna JA, Sithian N, Silich RJ (1996) 149 ambulatory laparoscopic cholecystectomies. Surg Endosc 10: 52–56
Kane KL, Lurie N, Borbas C, Morris N, Flood S, McLaughlin B, Nemanich G, Schultz A (1995) The outcomes of elective laparoscopic and open cholecystectomies. J Am Col Surg 180: 136–145
McHorney CA, Ware JA, Rachel Lu JF, Sherbourne CD (1994) The MOS 36-item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36): III. Tests of data quality, scaling assumptions, and reliability across diverse patient groups. Medical Care 32: 40–66
Medical Outcomes Trust (1994) How to score the SF-36 Health Survey. Medical Outcomes Trust, Boston
[NIH] National Institutes of Health (1992) Gallstones and laparoscopic cholecystectomy: NIH consensus statement. 10:1
Richardson WS, Furhman GS, Burch E, Bolton JS, Bowen JC (2001) Outpatient laparoscopic cholecystecomy: outcomes of 847 planned procedures. Surg Endosc 15: 193–195
Saunders CJ, Leary BF, Wolfe BM (1995) Is outpatient laparoscopic cholecystectomy wise? Surg Endosc 9: 1263–1268
Ware JE (1993) SF-36 Health Survey: manual and interpretation guide. Health Institute, New England Medical Center, Boston
Ware JE, Sherbourne CD (1992) The MOS 36-item Short-Form-Health-Survey (SF-36), I. Conceptual framework & item selection. Medical Care 30: 473–483
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Online publication: 18 March 2002
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Burney, R.E., Jones, K.R. Ambulatory and admitted laparoscopic cholecystectomy patients have comparable outcomes but different functional health status. Surg Endosc 16, 921–926 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00464-001-8201-z
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00464-001-8201-z