Aristotle Comprehensive Complexity Score (CCS): Explanation and Clinical Context The Aristotle Comprehensive Complexity Score (CCS) is a validated scoring system designed to quantify the overall complexity of congenital heart surgery procedures. It integrates patient-related factors (e.g., comorbidities, age, weight), procedure-related factors (e.g., technical difficulty, expected mortality), and diagnosis-related factors (e.g., anatomical complexity).
The total score ranges from 0 to 30, with higher values indicating more complex procedures and potentially higher risk for morbidity and mortality.
Clinicians use this score to inform surgical planning, risk stratification, and counseling for patients and families.
Reference:
O'Brien SM, et al. The Society of Thoracic Surgeons–European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery Congenital Heart Surgery Mortality Score and the Aristotle Complexity Score: An Updated Validation. Ann Thorac Surg. 2009;88(5):1560–1567. doi:10.1016/j.athoracsur.2009.06.017