Perioperative medicine & outcomes
The financial cost of postoperative complications: a prospective cohort study with linked health systems data
Authors' conclusion
Postoperative complications increase expenditure by ∼200%. For most procedures, expenditure exceeds income, independent of complications.
Study context
- Population
- Patients undergoing surgery in the NHS in England
- Participants
- 5,167 patients
- Exposure
- Patients with vs without postoperative complications
- With complicationsn = 848
- Outcome
- Cost of postoperative complications
Methodological detailsplanned analysis of the International Surgical Outcomes Study, linked to NHS England Hospital Episode Statistics data
- Planned analysis of the International Surgical Outcomes Study
- Linked to NHS England Hospital Episode Statistics data
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Average cost of admission
With complications
£3100
average · 95% CI £2921-3279
Without complications
£1038
average · 95% CI £1006-1070
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Secondary outcomes
LOS
Average loss £
| Outcome | With complications | Without complications |
|---|---|---|
| Profit-loss (PbR income vs expenditure) | 850 (95% CI £629-1071) | 930 (95% CI £866-995) |
Profit-loss (Payment by Results (PbR) income vs expenditure)
- Loss for most surgeries, regardless of complications
Safety
Postoperative complications
- Patients with a complication
- 848 (16.4%)
Original publication
The financial cost of postoperative complications: a prospective cohort study with linked health systems data. Br J Anaesth. Published 8 August 2025. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →