Current practices for cohort reporting and statistical adjustment in studies from the STS Adult Cardiac Surgery Database.
Academic Article
Overview
abstract
BACKGROUND: Current reporting and statistical adjustment practices of studies based on the Society of Thoracic Surgeons Adult Cardiac Surgery Database (STS ACSD) have not been described. METHODS: A review identified all published studies based on STS ACSD data from January 2016 to March 2024. Data were extracted by two authors and independently checked by the senior author. RESULTS: A total of 134 studies were included. Forty-six (34.3%) were on coronary artery bypass grafting, 22 (16.4%) on mitral valve surgery, 16 (11.9%) on aortic surgery, 14 (10.4%) on surgical aortic valve replacement, 3 (2.2%) on tricuspid valve surgery, 18 (13.4%) on combined procedures, and 15 (11.2%) on other surgeries. Forty-nine (44.0%) studies used the Participant User File (PUF) program, with a significant increase over time (p trend = 0.005). Of the 1239 variables available in the STS ACSD (version 4.20.2), 136 (11.0%) (median 21 variables per study, interquartile range 16-25) were used to describe the baseline patient characteristics populations and 191 (15.4%) (median 22 variables per study, interquartile range 17 - 33) for statistical adjustment; 121 studies (90.3%) performed statical adjustment, with multivariable regression used in the majority (80, 66.1%). PUF manuscripts had significantly more junior first authors (20.3% vs. 1.3%, p=0.001) and were published in higher-impact journals (median impact factor 4.90 [IQR 3.70-9.15] vs. 3.90 [IQR 3.60-4.70]; p=0.002) compared to non-PUF manuscripts. CONCLUSIONS: Our analysis provides data that may inform efforts to standardize reporting and analytic practices in studies based on the STS ACSD.
