Factors Affecting 30-Day Outcomes in Patients Undergoing Nontraumatic Upper Extremity Amputation: A Retrospective Descriptive Longitudinal Study

Background: Current literature concerning upper extremity amputations (UEAs) is very sparse. In this study, we conducted the first multicenter retrospective analysis aiming to identify risk factors associated with unfavorable outcomes in patients undergoing nontraumatic UEAs. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted using the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database. Adult patients who underwent nontraumatic UEAs between 2005 and 2021 were divided into two cohorts based on whether they experienced 30-day major morbidity (MM). Thereafter, multivariable binary logistic regression analysis was used to identify risk factors of MM. Results: From a total of 2984 cases, MM was observed in 8.7% of patients. Factors associated with MM included American Society of Anesthesiologists classes 3 (odds ratio [OR], 2.974 [1.862 to 4.748]) and 4 (OR, 4.736 [2.857 to 7.848]), being underweight (OR, 2.370 [1.251 to 4.491]), and suffering from insulin-dependent diabetes (OR, 1.390 [1.018 to 1.898]). In addition, an infectious surgical indication was associated with an increased risk of MM compared with having a benign (OR, 0.648 [0.488 to 0.682]) or malignant (OR, 0.205 [0.091 to 0.462]) indication. Moreover, patients undergoing shoulder amputations were at an increased risk of MM compared with those undergoing amputations of the forearm/wrist (OR, 0.243 [0.072 to 0.819]) and hands/fingers (OR, 0.286 [0.095 to 0.861]). Conclusion: The risk factors identified for MM after nontraumatic UEAs should guide surgeons toward appropriately identifying high-risk patients and adequately counseling them preoperatively.