A comparative study of the feasibility and limits of ambulatory surgery in infants under and over one year

Objective. – Outpatient surgery in pediatrics is attractive for several reasons. Although 6–8 months has been generally acknowledged as the lower age limit, no minimal age has been clearly established. This study evaluated the outcomes and limits of outpatient surgery in infants from 4 months to 1 year of age.Material and methods. – Between 1996 and 2003, 935 patients were admitted to our hospital for outpatient surgery; of these, 152 were between 4 months and 1 year (mean: 6 months). The indications were essentially surgery to the external genitalia and surgery to remove hernias. The following were exclusion criteria: age below 4 months, ASA scores equal to or above 3, and premature birth with either respiratory distress syndrome or a near-miss of sudden death.Results. – More than 98% of the infants met the criteria for outpatient surgery. Cancellations (1.97 vs. 0.51%, P > 0.05), conversions to classic hospitalization (0.65 vs. 0.37%, P > 0.05), postoperative complications (0.65 vs. 0.25%, P > 0.05), rehospitalization (0.65 vs.0.25%, P > 0.05) and relapse of the initial pathology (0.65 vs. 0.63%, P > 0.05) were not more frequent in these infants than in infants over 1 year.Conclusion. – Pediatric outpatient surgery can be proposed from the age of 4 months without increasing the postoperative risk, either anesthetic or surgical, included for selected former premature infants. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]