Table 1_Exposure-based stratification of postoperative complications in major cardiac surgical procedures: a retrospective cohort study using the MOVER database.docx

A composite perioperative exposure score (incorporating operating room duration, anesthesia duration, and diagnosis burden) was created to classify patients into low, intermediate, and high-exposure groups.</p>Results<p>The median patient age was 64 years (IQR 55.5–71.0), and 77.5% of patients were male. Median operating room and anesthesia durations were 423.0 min (IQR 374.0–487.0) and 437.0 min (IQR 389.0–505.0), respectively.

Overall, postoperative complications occurred in 23 of 639 procedures (3.6%). In multivariable analysis, anesthesia duration (OR 1.006, 95% CI 1.002–1.010, p = 0.005) and operating room duration (OR 1.004, 95% CI 1.001–1.008, p = 0.021), remained associated with postoperative complications, whereas hospital length of stay was analyzed separately as a postoperative outcome rather than included as a predictor. Patients in the highest exposure tertile demonstrated 2.31-fold higher odds of complications (95% CI 1.12–4.76, p = 0.023) compared with the lowest exposure group.</p>Conclusion<p>Prolonged perioperative exposure is significantly associated with postoperative complications in major cardiac surgical procedures.

Exposure-based perioperative metrics may serve as practical indicators of perioperative exposure burden and provide an exploratory framework for risk assessment in cardiac surgical populations.</p>