Going under the knife? Avoid Fridays. Trust us, we asked a doctor

[FarCenter]

British readers who have an appointment with the sawbones are directed to this illuminating report in the British Medical Journal, which concludes that you're substantially more at risk of popping your clogs as a result of surgery if they open you up on a Friday or a weekend.

That's the conclusion of a team led by Dr Paul Aylin from Imperial College London, which carried out a "retrospective analysis of national hospital administrative data" from "all acute and specialist English hospitals carrying out elective surgery over three financial years, from 2008-09 to 2010-11".

Of the 4,133,346 admissions for "elective operating room procedures", 27,582 died within 30 days - a "crude mortality rate" of 6.7 per 1,000.

However, "odds of death were 44 per cent and 82 per cent higher, respectively, if the procedures were carried out on Friday or a weekend compared with Monday".

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/05/29/surgery_survey/

Is it different in the US?

[cbayer]

1. In the US, avoid July.

That is when medical students become interns and interns become residents. Markedly increased responsibility with limited experience in that role.

[MADem]

2. I would guess it is the same.. nt

[winterpark]

3. No. In the US you die before seeing a doctor for the surgery

[nykym]

4. You die when the

Death Panels say it your time.

[Dash87]

5. "It's 5 o'clock - mind if I finish this Monday?" - surgeon

[LeftInTX]

6. Good advice

They also take weekends off leaving with "on call" physicians etc.

[Warren DeMontague]

7. I try to avoid any doctor who refers to himself as a "sawbones"

I'm funny, that way.