A national analysis of alcohol withdrawal syndrome in patients with operative trauma

Background Alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS) presents with a complex spectrum of clinical manifestations that complicate postoperative management. In trauma setting, subjective screening for AWS remains challenging due to the criticality of injury in these patients. We thus identified several patient characteristics and perioperative outcomes associated AWS development. Methods The 2016–2020 National Inpatient Sample was queried to identify all non-elective adult (≥18 years) hospitalizations for blunt or penetrating trauma undergoing operative management with a diagnosis of AWS. Patients with traumatic brain injury or with a hospital duration of stay <2 days were excluded. Outcomes of interest included in-hospital mortality, perioperative complications, hospitalization costs, length of stay (LOS) and non-home discharge. Results Of an estimated 2,965,079 operative trauma hospitalizations included for analysis, 36,415 (1.23 %) developed AWS following admission. The AWS cohort demonstrated increased odds of mortality (Adjusted Odds Ratio [AOR] 1.46, 95 % Confidence Interval [95 % CI] 1.23–1.73), along with infectious (AOR 1.73, 95 % CI 1.58–1.88), cardiac (AOR 1.24, 95 % CI 1.06–1.46), and respiratory (AOR 1.96, 95 % CI 1.81–2.11) complications. AWS was associated with prolonged LOS, (β: 3.3 days, 95 % CI: 3.0 to 3.5), greater cost (β: +$8900, 95 % CI $7900–9800) and incremental odds of nonhome discharge (AOR 1.43, 95 % CI 1.34–1.53). Furthermore, male sex, Medicaid insurance status, head injury and thoracic operation were linked with greater odds of development of AWS. Conclusion In the present study, AWS development was associated with increased odds of in-hospital mortality, perioperative complications, and resource burden. The identification of patient and operative characteristics linked with AWS may improve screening protocols in trauma care.