子宫切除是妇科临床最常实施的手术操作之一，子宫（子宫颈）良性疾病患者多因指征需要而选择子宫切除术［1］。经典子宫切除术的适应证主要包括子宫肌瘤、子宫内膜异位症/子宫腺肌病、异常子宫出血、子宫脱垂等，广义上子宫切除指征还包括其他盆腔疾病及不明原因的盆腔疼痛等。传统意义上的开腹子宫切除术是经典的手术方式，然而随着医疗技术的不断进步和认识的提高，子宫切除的路径选择已形成经腹、阴式、腹腔镜、腹腔镜辅助阴式和机器人辅助等多种路径并存的局面，并且各种手术路径和手术方式的子宫切除术均已在我国得到了蓬勃发展并广泛应用于临床。浏览更多请关注本刊微信公众号及当期杂志。

To develop and validate a comprehensive complication index (CCI) that integrates all events with their respective severity.Reporting of surgical complications is inconsistent and often incomplete. Most studies fail to provide information about the severity of complications, or inform only on the most severe event, ignoring events of lesser severity.We used an established classification of complications, adopting methods from operation risk index analysis in marketing research to develop a formula that considers all complications that may occur in a patient. The weights of each grade of complication, defined as median reference values, were obtained from 472 participants, who rated 30 different complications. Validation to assess sensitivity to treatment effects and validity of the CCI was performed by 4 different approaches, based on 1299 patients.The CCI is calculated as the sum of all complications that are weighted for their severity (multiplication of the median reference values from patients and physicians). The final formula yields a continuous scale to rank the severity of any combination of complications from 0 to 100 in a single patient. The CCI was highly sensitive in detecting treatment effect differences in the context of a randomized trial (effect size detected by CCI vs conventional standardized morbidity outcomes). It also showed a negative correlation with postoperative health status (r = -0.24, P = 0.002), and high correlation with the results of patient-rated single and multiple complications on conjoint analysis (r = 0.94, P < 0.001).The CCI summarizes all postoperative complications and is more sensitive than existing morbidity endpoints. It may serve as a standardized and widely applicable primary endpoint in surgical trials and other interventional fields of medicine. The CCI can be readily computed on the basis of tabulated complications according to the Clavien-Dindo classification (available at www.assessurgery.com).

A severity grading system is essential to reporting surgical complications. In 1992, we presented such a system (T92). Its use and that of systems derived from it have increased exponentially. Our purpose was to determine how well T92 and its modifications have functioned as a severity grading system and to develop an improved system for reporting complications.129 articles were studied in detail. Twenty variables were searched for in each article with particular emphasis on type of study, substitution of qualitative terms for grades, grade compression, and cut-points if grade compression was used. We also determined relative distribution of complications and manner of presentation of complications.T92 and derivative classifications have received wide use in surgical studies ranging from small studies with few complications to large studies of complex operations that describe many complications. There is a strong tendency to contract classifications and to substitute terms with self evident meaning for the numerical grades. Complications are presented in a large variety of tabular forms some of which are much easier to follow than others.Current methods for reporting the severity of complications incompletely fulfill the needs of authors of surgical studies. A new system-the Accordion Severity Grading System-is presented. The Accordion system can be used more readily for small as well as large studies. It introduces standard definition of simple quantitative terms and presents a standard tabular reporting system. This system should bring the field closer to a common severity grading method for surgical complications.

In recent years, the question of medical errors has received increasing attention. To minimize or avoid errors, it is important to understand both the error itself and the factors leading up to it, as well as the type of error that has been committed. Simulators, which have gained increasing importance in surgical training, can also be useful to "teach" errors, learn from them and develop strategies to avoid them - all of this in a safe environment free from any risk for patients. In this contribution, the nature of errors and their role in simulator training are discussed in detail.

Studying surgical secondary events is an evolving effort with no current established system for database design, standard reporting, or definitions. Using the Clavien-Dindo classification as a guide, in 2001 we developed a Surgical Secondary Events database based on grade of event and required intervention to begin prospectively recording and analyzing all surgical secondary events (SSE).Events are prospectively entered into the database by attending surgeons, house staff, and research staff. In 2008 we performed a blinded external audit of 1,498 operations that were randomly selected to examine the quality and reliability of the data.Of 4,284 operations, 1,498 were audited during the third quarter of 2008. Of these operations, 79 % (N = 1,180) did not have a secondary event while 21 % (N = 318) had an identified event; 91 % of operations (1,365) were correctly entered into the SSE database. Also 97 % (129 of 133) of missed secondary events were grades I and II. There were 3 grade III (2 %) and 1 grade IV (1 %) secondary event that were missed. There were no missed grade 5 secondary events.Grade III-IV events are more accurately collected than grade I-II events. Robust and accurate secondary events data can be collected by clinicians and research staff, and these data can safely be used for quality improvement projects and research.