The death rate tied to three common, treatable emergency surgical conditions increased about 50% between 1999 and 2020, according to an abstract being presented at the American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress 2026 in Washington, D.C., Sept. 26-29.
Researchers at Peoria, Ill.-based OSF HealthCare analyzed nearly 20,000 deaths from the CDC WONDER Multiple Cause of Death database to assess mortality trends tied to emergency general surgery conditions.
Here are five things to know from the study:
- The conditions included in the study were appendicitis, acute cholecystitis and abdominal wall hernia with obstruction or gangrene, recorded as a contributing factor to — not necessarily the main cause of — death.
- Between 1999 and 2020, the national death rate tied to these conditions grew from 0.4 to 0.6 deaths per 100,000 people.
Death rates associated with the conditions were 86% higher in rural communities and 49% higher in urban communities during the same time period.
Men had higher death rates than women throughout the study period, and rates were highest among adults ages 55-64. - Between 2021 and 2024, rural areas saw a 6.1% increase in the number of deaths associated with these conditions, while metropolitan areas saw a 3.2% increase.
- The study “raises important questions about whether patients are getting to surgical care in time, especially in rural communities, and whether workforce shortages or other pressures are contributing,” Vishnu Mani, MD, the study’s lead author and emergency general surgery medical director at OSF HealthCare, said in a Sept. 25 news release.
- A separate study led by researchers at the University of Chicago, also being presented at the congress, found underweight patients had 92% higher odds of dying after emergency general surgery than normal-weight patients.
