MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACHES IN THE MANAGEMENT OF COMPLEX ABDOMINAL TRAUMA: A STUDY AT HAYATABAD MEDICAL COMPLEX PESHAWAR

Abstract

Major abdominal injuries are a severe surgical pathology with significant mortality and morbidity index. Such injuries are usually multiple and can involve several organs, and would therefore need successive invasive management. The use of a multidisciplinary team (MDT) which is staffed with members from different specialties has been found critical for enhancing patients’ outcomes through allowing the correct identification, management as well as monitoring of such complications.

The purpose of this study was twofold: first, to assess the result of implementing a team approach to manage multiple injuries to the abdominal area, and second, to audit the outcome of patients with abdominal trauma at Hayatabad Medical Complex, Peshawar.

The present study is a non-interventional, comparative, cross-sectional study which involved 550 patients with complex abdominal trauma posted at Hayatabad Medical Complex from 2018-2023. Patients care was coordinated under a multidisciplinary team approach, by including trauma surgeons, radiologist’s anesthetists and critical care specialists. Participants’ information and data were obtained from clinical records such as patient characteristics, type of injury, treatment methods and the results. The statistical data were analyzed by the SPSS users version 25 the chi-squared and the logistic regression tester test was used to check the association of the treatment methods and its result.

The retrospective analysis showed overall survival of 85%, co-morbidity in 22% and mortality of 12 % of patients. Most (62%) of the patients involved blunt abdominal traumas, whilst 38% involved penetrating traumas. They also noted that patients that received care through a multidisciplinary team approach recorded better results due to early diagnosis plus proper coordination to decrease deaths as well as complications