Organization launches next-generation adult cardiac surgery risk calculator

The Society of Thoracic Surgeons has launched its next-generation Operative Risk Calculator to assess the risk of adult cardiac surgery operations.

The STS Adult Cardiac Surgery Database represents 97% of all cardiac operations performed in the United States and the new calculator is based on precise statistical models from the experience of more than 8 million patients. The new and improved calculator brings the power of big data to the fingertips of medical providers with the aim of improving patient care.

The dynamic new Risk Calculator is mobile-friendly and features a simplified, intuitive user design to improve physician-patient decision-making allowing surgeons and multidisciplinary medical providers to estimate a patient’s risk in real time. The risk calculations are based on the most current nationwide 2023 data from the STS Adult Cardiac Surgery Database and these are informed by robust risk models that continuously update every three months.

“This next-generation operative Risk Calculator is a powerful user-friendly tool that makes it easier for cardiothoracic surgical teams to assess risk and predict outcomes in real time for the vast majority of adult cardiac surgery procedures,” said STS President Thomas MacGillivray, MD.

The new calculator is the first in a series of planned enhancements to the STS National Database that will roll out in coming months to meet the day-to-day needs of surgeons, data managers, and cardiothoracic care teams, Dr. MacGillivray explained. “User feedback informed the design of the new Risk Calculator and is driving the development of other innovations to fully leverage the nearly 10 million cardiothoracic surgery procedures in the Database.”

The procedure-specific STS Risk Calculator currently captures the vast majority of all heart surgery performed, and by early 2024, it will capture more than 90% of all adult heart surgeries performed with the addition of precise risk models for less commonly performed operations.

The STS National Database incorporates data from every U.S. state and 11 countries, serving as the gold standard for clinical registries of patient outcomes in CT surgery, and one of the largest clinical registries in all of health care.

Provided by
The Society of Thoracic Surgeons