When Are Complications After Brain Tumor Surgery Detected?

Area of Science:

• Neurosurgery
• Surgical Oncology
• Patient Safety

Background:

• Optimizing follow-up and surveillance after intracranial surgery requires understanding complication timing.
• Brain tumor surgery carries risks of postoperative complications that necessitate careful monitoring.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the timing of postoperative complication detection after brain tumor surgery.
• To assess the severity of detected complications and identify associated risk factors.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective review of 1291 adult patients undergoing elective craniotomy for intracranial tumors (2008-2016).
• Data collected included medical history, comorbidities, 30-day outcomes, and complication detection time.
• Complication severity was graded using the Landriel classification system.

Main Results:

• 36.0% of patients experienced 708 complications within 30 days; 30.6% had mild/moderate (Grade I-II), 5.4% had severe/fatal (Grade III-IV).
• 5.7% of complications occurred within 24 hours; severe complications were more frequently detected early (45.7% within 24 hours).
• Lower Karnofsky Performance Status (<70) and longer surgery duration were linked to severe/fatal complications.

Conclusions:

• Extracranial infections (UTIs, pneumonias) are common mild/moderate complications post-intracranial tumor surgery.
• Detection rates for mild/moderate complications may be influenced by surveillance and follow-up routines.
• Severe and fatal complications are predominantly identified during the early postoperative period.