The study, set to be presented at the Society of Thoracic Surgeons’ 2024 Annual Meeting, examined 25,749 heart operations performed at 235 pediatric hospitals nationwide. The hospitals were divided into three categories: low-volume (103 or fewer cases per year), mid-volume (104 to 194 cases per year) and high-volume (more than 194 cases per year). The study included only procedures that used a cardiopulmonary bypass machine, according to a Jan. 28 news release from the organization.
Researchers led by scientists at the WVU Medicine Children’s Heart Center in Morgantown, W.Va., found that all three volume groups had overperforming and underperforming hospitals, and there was no statistically significant difference in hospital mortality when comparing low- and mid-volume centers to high-volume centers.
Historically, hospitals with a low volume of operations were associated with worse outcomes in patients, according to the release.
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