Comparison of the PCPLC database to NSQIP-P: A Patient Matched Comparison of Surgical Complications Following Repair of Anorectal Malformation

BACKGROUND:Anorectal malformations (ARM) are rare and heterogenous which creates a challenge in conducting research and offering recommendations for best practice. The Pediatric Colorectal and Pelvic Learning Consortium (PCPLC) was formed in 2016 to address this challenge and created a shared national data registry to collect information about pediatric colorectal patients. There has been no external validation of the data collected. We sought to evaluate the database by performing a patient matched analysis comparing 30-day outcomes identified in the PCPLC registry with the NSQIP-P database for patients undergoing surgical repair of ARM. METHODS:Patients captured in the PCPLC database from 2016 to 2021 at institutions also participating in NSQIP-P who underwent ARM repair younger than 12 months old were reviewed for 30-day complications. These patients were matched to their NSQIP-P record using their hospital identification number, and records were compared for concordance in identified complications. RESULTS:A total of 591 patient records met inclusion criteria in the PCPLC database. Of these, 180 patients were also reviewed by NSQIP-P. One hundred and fifty-six patient records had no complications recorded. Twenty-four patient records had a complication listed in one or both databases. There was a 91 % concordance rate between databases. When excluding complications not tracked in the PCPLC registry, this agreement improved to 93 %. CONCLUSION:Including all patients evaluated for this subpopulation, a 91 % concordance rate was observed when comparing PCPLC collected complications to NSQIP-P. Future efforts can focus on further validating the data within the PCPLC for other patient populations. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE:V.