The occurrence of intraoperative complications during partial nephrectomy and their impact on postoperative outcome: Results from the RECORd1 project

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to analyze the predictive factors of intraoperative complications in patients submitted to PN and the impact of intraoperative complications on postoperative outcomes. METHODS: Data of 1055 patients who underwent PN for cortical renal masses were recorded from a multicenter prospective observational study (RECORd1 project). RESULTS: Overall, 48 (5%) patients experienced 49 intraoperative complications (four medical, 45 surgical). At multivariable analysis, age (OR=1.02, 95% CI: 1.00-1.08, P=0.03), imperative versus elective surgical indication (OR=2.55, 95% CI: 1.12-5.85, P=0.03), open (OR=5.76, 95% CI: 1.05-9.21, P=0.01) and laparoscopic (OR=2.35, 95% CI: 1.11-4.95, P=0.03) versus robotic approaches resulted independent predictive factors of intraoperative complications. Patients experiencing intraoperative complications had a significantly higher rate of overall postoperative complications (41.6% vs. 17.3%, P<0.0001), surgical postoperative complications (29.2% vs. 12.6%, P<0.0001), Clavien 2 surgical postoperative complications (14.6% vs. 7.2%, P=0.05) and a significantly longer length of stay (8 [6-9] vs. 7 [5-8] days, P<0.0001) than those with an uneventful intraoperative course. CONCLUSIONS: Efforts should be made to minimize the risk of intraoperative complications during PN, and, in that case patients should be carefully monitored.