Recording of postoperative complications: quantity and quality.

Objective: To evaluate a simple working procedure for recording postoperative complications.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Setting: Teaching hospital, Denmark.

Subjects: 218 of 312 patients who were operated on from March to July 1996.

Interventions: Follow up 30 days after operation by looking up the local register of complications, review of medical records and by structured telephone interview with the patient.

Main Outcome Measures: Morbidity.

Results: All the patients were recorded in the local register, showing a complication rate of 21% (n = 49). However the medical record and the telephone interview showed complication rates of 68 (31%) and 76 (33%), respectively.

Conclusion: It is possible to improve the quantity of the recording by a simplified working procedure, while the quality is still a challenge.