Impact of Pediatric Subspecialty Training on Perioperative Complications in Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis Surgery.

This was a retrospective study of data prospectively collected from 2012 to 2016 from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) database. The objective was to evaluate the effect of pediatric fellowship training on 30-day perioperative morbidity and mortality following posterior spinal fusion (PSF) for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS). Several pathways exist in North America by which physicians acquire the clinical and technical skills to manage AIS surgically. Previous work has noted that surgeons with pediatric fellowship training tend to perform the bulk of pediatric spine surgeries. However, no study has been performed that examines if pediatric fellowship training (PFT) has an impact on early postoperative outcomes. A total of 14,194 AIS surgical patients were identified from the ACS NSQIP database. A cohort receiving isolated PSF was abstracted from this group and separated into 3 groups according to surgeon training: (1) ped+ (with PFT, n=4455); (2) ped-(without PFT, n=325); and (3) ped+match (patients selected from ped+ matched to ped- for age, sex, and fusion levels, n=325). The groups were compared for 30-day perioperative morbidity and mortality. No significant differences were noted for the 3 groups in terms of wound infections, length of hospital stay, readmissions, and unplanned returns to the operating room. Ped+match and ped- groups had no difference in neurologic injury rates. However, the ped+ and ped+match groups had significantly lower rates of blood transfusion and average volume of blood lost compared with the ped- group. Surgeons with pediatric fellowship training have a significantly lower average blood loss volume and blood transfusion rate in PSF for AIS than surgeons without such training. Understanding that different training pathways for surgeons may directly impact operative outcomes invites further examination of surgical education in North America to improve training consistency. [Orthopedics. 2020;43(x):xx-xx.].