Ann Geriatr Med Res.  2019 Dec;23(4):204-211. 10.4235/agmr.19.0026.

Comparative Analysis of Anesthetic Legal Disputes between Older and Younger Patients Referred to the Korean Society of Anesthesiologists in 2009–2018

• Cho SA
• Lee SJ
• Sung TY
• Kim DK
• Cho CK

• KMID: 2470657
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4235/agmr.19.0026

Abstract

BACKGROUND
Although the average age of patients undergoing surgical procedures or anesthesia is increasing, differences in anesthesia-related injuries among different age groups have been not reported. This study compared older and younger patients on the basis of disputes regarding anesthesia-related injuries referred to the Korean Society of Anesthesiologists (KSA).
METHODS
We retrospectively analyzed disputes regarding anesthesia-related injuries referred to the KSA between 2009 and 2018. After excluding duplicates, incomplete data, local anesthesia cases, and patients aged ≤18 or 55-64 years, the subjects were divided into older (≥65 years) and younger (19-54 years) age groups. The parameters included in the KSA database were compared between these two groups.
RESULTS
The 115 cases included in the study included 28 and 87 cases from the older and younger groups, respectively. The proportions of preventable cases of anesthesia-related adverse events differed significantly between the older (25%) and younger groups (48.3%). The most common medical disputes in the older group were related to general anesthesia, orthopedic surgery, local hospitals, and anesthesiologist, whereas those in the younger group were related to sedation, plastic surgery, local clinics, and non-anesthesiologists.
CONCLUSION
In addition to understanding the differences in anesthesia characteristics according to age group, it is also necessary to develop means for reducing preventable anesthesia-related adverse events. Furthermore, we must continue to register anesthesia-related disputes, and a voluntary reporting system should be established to prevent anesthesia-related accidents.

Keyword

Anesthesia; Geriatric assessment; Dissent and disputes

MeSH Terms

Anesthesia
Anesthesia, General
Anesthesia, Local
Dissent and Disputes*
Geriatric Assessment
Humans
Orthopedics
Retrospective Studies
Surgery, Plastic