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Treatment-Related Adverse Event Claims in Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery: A Nationwide Finnish Review
Alexander Westerholm1, Satu Lamminmäki1, Lasse Rämö2,3
1Department of Otorhinolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, Helsinki University Hospital and University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
Background:
This study investigated the frequency and characteristics of patient injuries related to Otorhinolaryngology-head and neck surgery (ORL-HNS) in Finland from 2012 to 2023, with a focus on common complications, trends in injury frequency and comparisons with previous studies.
Methods:
Data were obtained from the Patient Insurance Centre (PIC) of Finland, encompassing all ORL-HNS-related patient injury cases from 2012 to 2023. The study reviewed 1153 claims, of which 317 (27.5%) were compensated. The analysed variables included patient demographics, procedure types, complications and healthcare settings. Descriptive statistics were used to summarise the data.
Results:
Most compensated injuries (66.6%) were due to surgical or procedural complications, followed by inadequate management (24.3%). Most cases occurred at university hospitals (40.1%) or regional hospitals (38.8%) and were handled by specialists (69.7%). Endoscopic sinus surgery and septoplasty had compensation ratios of 0.7 and 0.72 per 1000 procedures, respectively. The likelihood of compensation decreased with patient age but was not correlated with hospital type. Among subspecialties, rhinology (31%) and head and neck surgery (30%) had the highest frequency of compensated claims.
Conclusions:
This study corroborates previous findings that ORL-HNS patient injuries are relatively rare, with many occurring during routine surgeries performed by specialists. These results challenge the assumption that surgical errors stem primarily from inexperience. The greater number of reported complications in university hospitals may reflect the trend towards centralising complex procedures.
