Impact of trainees involvement on surgical outcomes of abdominal and laparoscopic myomectomy

To determine the association of trainees involvement with surgical outcomes of abdominal and laparoscopic myomectomy including operative time, rate of transfusion, and complications.

A retrospective cohort study of 1145 patients who underwent an abdominal or laparoscopic myomectomy from 2008-2012 using the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database (Canadian Task Force Classification II-2).

Overall, 64% of myomectomies involved trainees. Trainees involvement was associated with a longer operative time for abdominal myomectomies (mean difference 20.17 minutes, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) [11.37,28.97], p < 0.01) overall and when stratified by fibroid burden. For laparoscopic myomectomy, there was no difference in operative time between trainees vs no trainees involvement (mean difference 4.64 minutes, 95% CI [-18.07,27.35], p = 0.67). There was a higher rate of transfusion with trainees involvement for abdominal myomectomies (10% vs 2%, p < 0.01; Odds Ratio (OR) 5.62, 95% CI [2.53,12.51], p < 0.01). Trainees involvement was not found to be associated with rate of transfusion for laparoscopic myomectomy (4% vs 5%, p = 0.86; OR 0.82, 95% CI [0.16,4.14], p = 0.81). For abdominal myomectomy, there was a higher rate of overall complications (15% vs 5%, p < 0.01; OR 2.96, 95% CI [1.77,4.93], p < 0.01) and minor complications (14% vs 4%, p < 0.01; OR 3.71, 95% CI [2.09,6.57], p < 0.01) with no difference in major complications (3% vs 2%, p = 0.23). For laparoscopic myomectomy, there was no difference in overall (6% vs 10% p = 0.41; OR 0.59, 95% CI [0.18,2.01], p = 0.40), major (2% vs 0%, p = 0.38), or minor (5% vs 10%, p = 0.32; OR 0.52, 95% CI [0.15,1.79], p = 0.30) complications.

Trainees involvement was associated with increased operative time, rate of transfusion, and complications for abdominal myomectomy, however, did not impact surgical outcomes for laparoscopic myomectomy.