cholecystectomy (10%), Hernia surgery- incarceration and strangulation (9%), duodenal ulcer surgery- bleeding and perforation (5%), and other less commonly performed procedures (17%) A cross sectional study design was implemented based on the year the surgical procedure was performed. Patients were then grouped into three groups based on the duration since the surgery: Group 1 included patients who had an emergency procedure in 2010 and were contacted 1 year post-op; Group 2 included patients who had an emergency procedure in 2009 and were contacted 2 years post-op; Group 3 included patients who had an

emergency procedure in 2008 and were contacted 3 years post-op. After identifying those mTOR cancer patients who are still alive, the three cohorts of patients were contacted by telephone to conduct the survey (up to three

attempts). Follow-up calls were completed between November 2011 and January 2012. Participants who were hard-of-hearing were mailed surveys and asked to return them in pre-paid envelopes. In some instances, a surrogate (spouse or relative) was used if the patient was unable to respond (demented or no English). Consented participants, or their surrogates, responded to the following four survey questionnaires: (1) Abbreviated Mental Test Score-4 (AMTS-4), a brief 4-item survey that screens for cognitive impairment. Patients are considered cognitively impaired if they fail to answer any of the four questions MycoClean Mycoplasma Removal Kit [13]. (2) Barthel Index, a 10-item www.selleckchem.com/screening/ion-channel-ligand-library.html questionnaire with three levels of answers, which assesses the level of independence with activities of daily living [14, 15]. (3) Vulnerable Elders Survey (VES-13), is a 13-item questionnaire that measures frailty in older persons. It has a maximum score of 10 (high score indicates worse health state). The VES-13 has been validated in elderly patients to predict death and decline in function [6, 16, 17]. (4) EuroQol-5 Dimensional

Scale (EQ-5D), a health utility measure that has five questions with three levels of answers for each question, and can yield a health state between 0 and 1 (where 0 is death and 1 is the best health state a person can have). The EQ-5D is a valid and reliable tool for the measurement of health related quality of life [18]. The four questionnaires have been used and are reliable in this patient population group. The results will give a clear indication on cognitive function, independence, activity of daily living, and health related quality of life in general. In addition, participants were asked whether they currently live alone, and whether their place of residence had changed since the time of their surgery. The study received ethical committee approval from the HREB at the University of Alberta. STATA data analysis and statistical software, version 12, was used for the statistical analysis.