Orthopedic After Surgery Complications Lower During Daylight Operating Hours

A new study shows orthopedic after surgery complications are lower when the operations are performed during daylight hours.

The risk of having unplanned follow up surgery to remove painful hardware was only three percent for prime time operations compared to 27 percent for after hours patients.

The study, published in The Journal of  Bone and Joint Surgery, found little difference otherwise for healing, recovery time or major complications.

The lead study author, Dr. William M. Ricci, chief of the Orthopaedic Trauma Service at Washington University school of Medicine in St. Louis, said in a news release, “Although everyone wants to be treated immediately, it may be the patient’s best interest to wait until morning. The reality is that the on-call night surgical team may not be well rested, as it is likely they just finished a normal day shift.”

Dr. Ricci added in the news release issued by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, “Naturally, when the medical condition is emergent and time is a critical factor, immediate surgery should proceed regardless of time of day.”

The study proving orthopedic after surgery complications were lower for daylight hours involved following 203 surgeries to repair either a fractured thigh or shine bone.