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Purpose All-terrain vehicles (ATVs) pose a significant risk for morbidity and mortality amongst children. We hypothesize that current vague legislation regarding helmet use impacts injury patterns and outcomes in pediatric ATV accidents. Methods The institutional trauma registry was queried for pediatric patients involved in ATV accidents from 2006 to 2019. Patient demographics and helmet wearing status were identified in addition to patient outcomes, such as injury pattern, injury severity score, mortality, length of stay, and discharge disposition. These elements were analyzed for statistical significance. Results 720 patients presented during the study period, which were predominantly male (71%, n = 511) and less than 16 years old (76%, n = 543). Most patients were not wearing a helmet (82%, n = 589) at time of injury. Notably, there were 7 fatalities. A lack of helmet use is positively associated with head injury (42% vs 23%, P < .01), intracranial hemorrhage (15% vs 7%, P = .03), and associated with lower Glasgow Coma Scale (13.9 vs 14.4, P < .01). Children 16 years and older were least likely to wear a helmet and most likely to incur injuries. Patients over 16 years had longer lengths of stay, higher mortality, and higher need for rehabilitation. Conclusion Not wearing a helmet is directly correlated with injury severity and concerning rates of head injury. Children 16 years and older are at greatest risk for injury, but younger children are still at risk. Stricter state laws regarding helmet use are necessary to reduce pediatric ATV-related injury burden. Level of Evidence level III retrospective comparative study

The objective of this study is to assess the accuracy of the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program online risk calculator for estimating risk after operation for gastric cancer using the United States Gastric Cancer Collaborative. Nine hundred and sixty-five patients who underwent resection of gastric adenocarcinoma between January 2000 and December 2012 at seven academic medical centers were included. Actual complication rates and outcomes for patients were compared. Most of the patients underwent total gastrectomy with Roux-en-Y reconstruction (404, 41.9%) and partial gastrectomy with gastrojejunostomy (239, 24.8%) or Roux-en-Y reconstruction (284, 29.4%). The C-statistic was highest for venous throm-boembolism (0.690) and lowest for renal failure at (0.540). All C-statistics were less than 0.7. Brier scores ranged from 0.010 for venous thromboembolism to 0.238 for any complication. General estimates of risk for the cohort were variable in terms of accuracy. Improving the ability of surgeons to estimate preoperative risk for patients is critically important so that efforts at risk reduction can be personalized to each patient. The American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program risk calculator is a rapid and easy-to-use tool and validation of the calculator is important as its use becomes more common.

First described more than 60 years ago, the open abdomen has now become a relatively common entity in surgical ICUs. Although the indications for an open abdomen have evolved since the original description of the damage control laparotomy, the goal remains to provide an unstable or critically ill patient time to correct their physiologic derangements. Temporary abdominal closure is thus used as a bridge to definitive repair and closure. Unfortunately, the open abdomen is associated with significant morbidity and mortality, and recent studies have suggested an overuse of the technique. Once the decision is made to proceed with an open abdomen, multiple options exist for temporary abdominal closure. The hope is to obtain definitive closure shortly thereafter in an attempt to reduce potential complications including intra-abdominal infection or enteroatmospheric fistula. Options for temporary closure range from the Bogotá bag to vacuum-assisted techniques; a combined technique of sequential fascial closure with vacuum assistance has recently been shown to result in 100% fascial approximation. In situations where fascial closure is unattainable, temporary coverage with a skin graft may be employed, followed by late abdominal closure via complex abdominal herniorrhaphy. Even using advanced methods such as component separation or a “pork sandwich” technique, the complication and recurrence rates remain high. A careful understanding of the indications, optimal management, and potential complications of the open abdomen is necessary to limit its overuse and ultimately reduce some of the challenges associated with it.