The Inselspital Surgical Cohort Study (InSurg)

April 28, 2026 updated by: Insel Gruppe AG, University Hospital Bern
Personalizing surgical care is of enormous clinical relevance, when considering the number of patients undergoing surgery in Switzerland every year. Currently, personalization is based on underlying or coexisting disease or alterations of laboratory values, but there is no accepted biological test available that may predict success or failure of surgery. Surgical site infections are the most common form of hospital-acquired infections. While the relevance of bacteria, antibiotics and intensive care support is well accepted, the impact of the individual host response remains poorly understood. The Investigators hypothesize that postoperative alterations of the metabolome allow identification of predictors of surgical complications in general, and surgical site infections in particular.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

The investigators will conduct a prospective cohort study aiming to identify the metabolic and genetic signature that is associated with surgical site infections. Secondary aims and outcomes include the influence of metabolome on response to anesthetic drugs and acute and chronic pain, surgery- and anesthesia-factors related to short- and long-term oncological outcome, metabolic response effect on infectious complications and rejection after transplantation, bacteria-specific immune responses to major surgery after 2-4 weeks after surgery, metabolomics and macrobiotic markers for postoperative ileus or anastomotic leakage, and the effect of the presence of multidrug resistant bacteria on surgical outcome. All patients undergoing surgery in the investigators' clinic and who gave informed consent will be included. A blood sample will be taken before surgery, on the first postoperative day and after 3-8 weeks. A Urine sample will be taken after surgery and after 3-8 weeks. Sink and rectal swabs will be acquired before surgery. The samples will be stored in a Biobank. Additionally, all data routinely captured during the treatment of the patient from the different data collection systems in use in the investigators' hospital will be coded and centralized in a single, cohort database

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
1226

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

16 years and older (Child, Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Patients undergoing surgery at the Department of Visceral Surgery and Medicine, Inselspital, University Hospital Bern

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Patients undergoing surgery at the Department of Visceral Surgery and Medicine, Inselspital, University Hospital Bern
  • Who gave General consent
  • Study-specific written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

  • None

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
InSurg cohort
Patients who undergo elective or emergency surgery at the Department of Visceral Surgery and Medicine, Inselspital, Bern, who gave informed consent.
Diagnostic test: Blood and urine samples, skin and stool swabs
Blood samples will be collected before surgery, on the first postoperative day and after 3-8 weeks. Urine samples will be collected after surgery and after 3-8 weeks. Stool and skin swabs will be collected before surgery.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Incidence of surgical site infection
Time Frame: 30 days
Number of patients with surgical site infections 30 days postoperatively
30 days

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Stool - incidence of surgical site infections
Time Frame: 30 days
Predictive value of preoperative stool sample for surgical site infections
30 days
Urine - incidence of surgical site infections
Time Frame: 30 days
Predictive value of preoperative urine sample for surgical site infections
30 days
Blood - incidence of surgical site infections
Time Frame: 30 days
Predictive value of pre and postoperative plasma metabolome for surgical site infections
30 days
Somatic genomic in surgical site infections
Time Frame: 30 days
Predictive value of somatic genomic variations for surgical site infections
30 days
Informed Consent
Time Frame: 3 years
Rate of inclusion for informed consenting
3 years
Biobanking
Time Frame: 3 years
Rate of inclusion for full biobanking
3 years

Other Outcome Measures

Other Outcome Measures

For clinical trials, a planned measurement described in the protocol that is used to determine the effect of an intervention/treatment on participants. For observational studies, a measurement or observation that is used to describe patterns of diseases or traits, or associations with exposures, risk factors, or treatment. Types of outcome measures include primary outcome measure and secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Intraoperative metabolomic Response to surgery
Time Frame: 8 weeks
Metabolome will be extracted from the blood, skin, urine and stool samples analyzed using high resolution mass spectrometry. Metabolomic analysis will be obtained preoperatively in the outpatient setting (elective patients) or at the beginning (emergency patients) and end of the operation. Patterns of metabolites will be evaluated by untargeted analysis.
8 weeks
Disease-free survival after surgery
Time Frame: 3 years
Disease-free survival after surgery in years will be recorded in oncological patients, and interpreted according to surgical and anesthesia-specific responses after abdominal surgery, in terms of metabolomics analysis of the blood, skin, urine and stool samples, as described above.
3 years
Recurrence-free survival after surgery
Time Frame: 3 years
Recurrence-free survival after surgery in years will be recorded in oncological patients, and interpreted according to surgical and anesthesia-specific responses after abdominal surgery, in terms of metabolomics analysis of the blood, skin, urine and stool samples, as described above.
3 years
Overall survival after surgery
Time Frame: 3 years
Overall survival after surgery in years will be recorded in oncological patients, and interpreted according to surgical and anesthesia-specific responses after abdominal surgery, in terms of metabolomics analysis of the blood, skin, urine and stool samples, as described above.
3 years

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Insel Gruppe AG, University Hospital Bern

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Guido Beldi, Insel Gruppe AG, University Hospital Bern

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
September 9, 2019

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
February 28, 2028

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
February 28, 2028

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
August 30, 2019

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
September 19, 2019

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
September 20, 2019

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
May 5, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
April 28, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 2019-00576

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Cookie Settings

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. For more details carefully read our Privacy and Cookies Policy. ...>>>You can change your preferences or withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the cookies from your website or computer as described in the policy. Please accept it and choose your preferences by ticking the corresponding boxes in the "Manage Settings" section below. Please carefully read our Terms of Service before you proceed with using any part of this website.
«Manage Settings