9 June 2023current frailty screenings are underutilized. Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and University of Southern California found that a 20-second repetitive elbow flexion-extension test is a feasible tool in evaluating the risk of major adverse outcomes following vascular surgery procedures. The test measures frailty using a wrist-worn sensor that quantifies weakness, slowness, rigidity and exhaustion. In their study, published this week in JAMA Network Open, researchers tested 152 vascular surgery patients one week prior to surgery and followed them one month post-surgery to document any adverse events. They found that baseline demographic information and clinical information were not good predictors of adverse events, but those who were identified as frail using the sensor-based 20-second test were 2.1 times more likely to have an adverse event following surgery, independent of the type of surgery, location of incision or surgery site (Baylor College of Medicine or University of Southern California). This data can be used to better inform surgeons and patients/families about the risk of adverse events so that they can take measures to reduce the risk of adverse events ahead of surgery. Future research will be done to determine whether the 20-second test can be used to predict adverse events in other types of procedures outside of vascular surgery. Historically, good surgical outcomes were felt to come from high-quality surgeons who had excellent surgical technique and judgment. We now know that a good surgical outcome is the result of an expertly coordinated team effort. Technology is indeed part of that team and through the digital revolution, we can now scale that technology to put it into use in a variety of settings providing the potential to improve outcomes for all patients undergoing surgery. Collaboration has become the new competition and centers which provide the organizational infrastructure to foster the intellectual mixing of engineering, computer science, molecular biology, chemistry, and materials science alongside anesthesia, nursing and surgery will be well-positioned to innovate and design treatments and surgical interventions to help patients in the future. An extraordinary revolution in technology has occurred before our eyes, bringing with it several improvements in the delivery of surgical care
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