Posted on 12/17/2018 1:28:54 PM PST by ETL
A new study reveals that during stressful moments in the operating room, surgeons make up to 66 percent more mistakes on patients. Using a technology that captured the electrical activity of a surgeon's heart, researchers found that during intervals of short-term stress, which can be triggered by a negative thought or a loud noise in the operating room, surgeons are much more prone to make mistakes that can cause bleeding, torn tissue, or burns.
The results of the study, published in the open branch of the British Journal of Surgery, could lead to the development of protocol aiming to reduce acute or short-term stress on surgeons working in the operating room. Medical errors cause between 250,000-440,000 deaths annually in the U.S., with a proportion of those mistakes occurring in operating rooms. Any change in common practice that reduces the number mistakes made by surgeons due to stress would also reduce the number deaths.
It's an important study published in a prestigious journal, and even more impressive is that its lead author, Peter Dupont Grantcharov, is a master's student at the Data Science Institute at Columbia University. A year and a half ago, Grantcharov had the idea to ask Dr. Homero Rivas, Associate Professor of Surgery at Stanford Medical Center, to wear a Hexoskin Smart Shirt under his scrubs while he did surgeries. The shirt, designed to give athletes precise physiological data during workouts, measures the electrical impulses that trigger heartbeats. From this data, Grantcharov derived heart-rate variability statistics ? the variation in times between heartbeats, to determine Rivas's momentary stress levels.
Grantcharov was also allowed in the operating room, where he collected laparoscopic video recordings of Rivas as he worked. Another researcher later reviewed the recordings and documented Rivas's mistakes using validated frameworks for assessing surgical performance. Both his stress levels and surgical errors were time stamped so that Grantcharov could correlate the two. This data yielded the somewhat alarming finding that the effect of short-term stress on surgical error is as high as a 66 percent increase.
"I was surprised by that, as well as by the amount of distractions in the operating room," says Grantcharov, who did the study while working as a research assistant at the Stanford Medical Center before enrolling at DSI. "Many machines have alarms that go off periodically, equipment malfunctions, side conversations take place, people walk in and out of the OR—I could go on. My hope is that other researchers will build upon our work to make further strides in learning about the causes of stress on surgical personnel. If our study helps make the OR a safer place for patients, I'd be thrilled."
Grantcharov was involved in designing the study, collecting and analyzing the stress and surgical performance data as well as writing the manuscript. It was his first experience with data science, and he loved it. In point of fact, this research is what prompted him to enroll in the master's program at DSI, where he just completed his first semester.
Explore further: Researchers create 'black box' for use in operating rooms
More information: P. D. Grantcharov et al. Acute mental stress and surgical performance, BJS Open (2018). DOI: 10.1002/bjs5.104
Journal reference: British Journal of Surgery 
Provided by: Data Science Institute at Columbia
Well its not brian surgery... oh wait
Aren’t we lucky to have scientists and experts? Who woulda thought people under stress make more mistakes???
Wow, they needed a study?
This ain’t rocket surgery!..................
My reaction too. They need a study to know this?
New study finds that people who drink lots of alcohol get drunk...................Film at eleven..................
I keep a flask in my vest pocket for my surgeon. I want him relaxed for my operations.
I’m postponing gall bladder surgery as long as I can, just so the Pancreatitis doesn’t return. MY GI Team says surgery isn’t necessary, after 15 ERCPs (Endoscopies to place/replace stents to drain a pseudo-cyst on the pancreas), and the “Less Invasive Surgery” Dept surgeon wants to slice me open in a Lap Chole (Laparoscopic cholecystectomy). I’ll take the endoscopy everytime, w/ propacol “twilight anesthestic”. Nice stuff.
Best of luck to you, when that times comes, FRiend.
Sorry, don’t know anything about the subject to offer advice.
as my mom used to say “ No sh*t Dick Tracy”.
The headline was too easy to be written by Captain Obvious. He delegated the task to Corporal Obvious and told him to dumb it down.
this conclusion ain’t rocket science. DUH+
And dogs eat when you put food in front of them.
Calling DR. Howard, DR. Fine, DR. Howard!
I've heard that too. But it's best to have a multi-million dollar study to confirm it.
Lead Researcher Peter Dupont Grantcharov, a master’s student at the Data Science Institute at Columbia University.
Should change his last name to “GrantsRUs.” Or “Grantcherassov.”
So if someone has a severe brain bleed
From a depressed skull fracture, at 2am
Do you really expect the neurosurgeon to
Always be firing on all cylinders?
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