Is Frailty Associated with Worse Outcomes After Major Liver Surgery? An Observational Case–Control Study

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Background: The rate of morbidity after liver surgery is estimated at 30% and can be even higher when considering higher-risk subgroups of patients. Frailty is believed to better predict surgical outcomes by showcasing the patient’s ability to withstand major surgical stress and selecting frail ones. Methods: This is a single-centre, observational case–control study on patients diagnosed with liver malignancies who underwent liver resections between 2013 and 2024. The five-item modified Frailty Index (mFI-5) was used to split patients into frail and non-frail. The two groups were compared in terms of preoperative, operative and postoperative outcomes using a chi-squared and logistic regression model. Results: A total of 230 patients were included and split into two groups: non-frail, NF, n = 90, and frail patients, F, n = 140. Overall, F patients had a higher rate of morbidity (p = 0.04) but with similar mortality and length of stay. When considering only major liver resections, F patients had a higher probability of posthepatectomy liver failure (LR 6.793, p = 0.009), postoperative bleeding (LR 9.541, p = 0.002) and longer ICU stay (LR 8.666, p = 0.003), with similar rates of bile leak, surgical site infections, length of stay and mortality. Conclusions: Frailty seems to be a solid predictor of posthepatectomy liver failure in patients undergoing major liver resections and is associated with a longer ICU stay. However, mortality and surgical morbidity seem to be comparable between frail and non-frail patients.

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