A novel scoring system for identifying patients at risk for venous thromboembolism undergoing diverticular resection: an American College of Surgeons-National Surgical Quality Improvement Program Study

Following colorectal surgery, venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a serious complication occurring at an estimated incidence of 2–4%. There is a significant body of literature stratifying risk of VTE in specific populations undergoing colorectal resection for cancer or inflammatory bowel disease. There has been little research characterizing patients undergoing colorectal surgery for other indications, e.g. diverticulitis. We hypothesize that there exists a subgroup of patients with identifiable risk factors undergoing resection for diverticulitis that has relatively higher risks for VTE. We conducted a retrospective review of the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Project database from 2006 to 2017 who underwent colorectal resection for diverticulitis. Patients with a primary indication for resection other than diverticulitis were excluded. Multivariate logistic regression modeling was conducted to determine the risk of VTE for each independent variable. A novel scoring system was developed and a receiver-operating-characteristic curve was generated. The rate of VTE was 1.49%. An 7-point scoring system was developed using identified significant variables. Patients scoring ≥ 6 on the developed scoring scale had a 3.12% risk of 30-day VTE development. A simple scoring system based on identified significant risk factors was specifically developed to predict the risk of VTE in patients undergoing diverticular colorectal resection. These patients are at significantly higher risk and may justify increased vigilance regarding VTE events, similar to patients undergoing colorectal resection for cancer or inflammatory bowel disease.