Postoperative Daycare as a Safe and Cost-Effective Option for Secondary Alveolar Bone Graft (SABG) Surgery: A Retrospective Comparative Cohort Study

Objective To evaluate the outcomes of Secondary Alveolar Bone Grafting (SABG) in patients treated either in daycare or with multiple day hospitalization (MDH) in relation to costs and complication rates. Design Retrospective comparative cohort study. Setting The data was collected from two settings: Postoperative daycare or MDH after oral cleft surgery in an Academic Medical Center in The Netherlands. Patients Data of 137 patients with unilateral Cleft lip, alveolus, and palate (CLAP) treated between 2006-2018 were evaluated. Registered clinical variables: age, gender, cleft subtype, bone donor site, type of hospitalization, length of stay, additional surgery, complications, surgeons, and costs. Interventions Closure of the alveolar cleft with/without closure of the anterior palate. Main outcome measures Univariate analyses. Results Of the 137 patients, 46.7% were treated in MDH, and 53.3% in daycare. Total costs for daycare were significantly lower (P < .001). All patients treated in daycare received mandibular symphysis bone, whereas in MDH, 46.9% received iliac crest bone instead. Bone donor site was associated with postoperative care type. Complication rates were slightly but not significantly higher in daycare (26%) vs. MDH (14.1%) (P = .09). Most were Grade I (minor) according to Clavien Dindo classification. Conclusions Daycare after alveolar cleft surgery is about as safe as MDH, but significantly cheaper.