The effect of surgical setting on anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction outcomes

Objective: Ambulatory surgical centers (ASC’s) have emerged as an alternative to the traditional hospital- based outpatient department (HOPD). We aim to determine the effect of surgical setting on adverse events following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR).Methods: The Humana Claims Database was queried for all patients undergoing ACLR in the HOPD or ASC setting, using the PearlDiver supercomputer. To eliminate selection bias in our study, the HOPD and ASC cohorts were propensity score matched on baseline demographics, comorbidities, and operative factors. Comparisons between the matched cohorts were made using chi-square tests. Logistic regression models were created to determine the effect of surgical setting on adverse events.Results: A total of 13,647 patients were queried in our study, 5,298 of whom underwent surgery in an ASC and 8,349 of whom underwent surgery in an HOPD. Analysis of the post-matched cohort revealed no differences between cohorts for mechanical failure, nerve injury, pulmonary embolism, septic joint, wound infection, revision surgery and readmission. Rates of deep vein thrombosis (1.18% vs 1.84%; p = .03) were significantly lower in the ASC group. On logistic regression, ASC was associated with decreased risk for deep vein thrombosis (.87, .83-.93) and pulmonary embolism (.85, .78-.95).Conclusion: ACLR performed in ASC is associated with reduced risk of venous thromboembolism and no difference in surgical morbidity and readmissions versus ACLR performed in HOPD. Development of a standardized algorithm for patient selection in the ASC setting is needed to preserve acceptability of ASC-based ACLR in cost-savings and patient safety models.