From trauma surgery to acute care surgery: a 4-year observational study at a single trauma center in Korea.

Abstract

Purpose: The acute care surgery (ACS) model establishes the capacity to immediately accommodate nontraumatic emergency surgery requiring urgent treatment while simultaneously elevating the existing trauma care system to the highest level. This study aims to evaluate the 4-year experience of operating after expanding the trauma surgery domain to ACS at this institution, which was designated as a lower-level trauma center by the local government in 2020.

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted using clinical records for patients who underwent surgery in the Division of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery over a 54-month period, from March 2021 to August 2025.

Results: Trauma volumes remained stable (10-20 cases semiannually) after ACS implementation, with surgical case numbers similar to those recorded before its introduction. Nontrauma volumes increased from 3 cases in March-August 2023 to 163 in March-August 2025.

Conclusions: The transition from the trauma surgery model to the ACS model successfully increased the efficiency of trauma and emergency general surgery within the level II low-volume environment, accomplishing without reducing the existing trauma caseload. These findings support the adoption of ACS in similar emergency medical institutions and offer insights relevant for national policy development concerning emergency general surgery in Korea.