ABSTRACT
Post-operative pulmonary complications after non-cardiothoracic surgery are common and can adversely affect morbidity, mortality and length of hospital stay. Knowledge as regards factors predicting postoperative pulmonary complications in our local setting is imperfect. To study factors predicting post-operative pulmonary complications in developing countries. Data of consecutive 404 patients undergoing non-cardiothoracic surgery under general anesthesia with tracheal intubation was collected prospectively from Jan 2009 to Dec 2010. Chi-square was used for univariate analysis. Multivariate analysis was conducted using forward stepwise logistic regression. The mean age was 36 +/- 18 years with slight male predominence [54% vs 46%]. 22% [n=89] were smokers and the mean Body Mass Index was 23 +/- 4.5 kg/m2 with 35% [n=141] overweight and obese. 5% [n=20] of subjects had pre-existing chronic lung conditions while 23% [n=92] had non-pulmonary chronic conditions. 70% [n=282] of the surgeries were done electively and the mean duration of anesthesia was 78 +/- 44 minutes. The overall postoperative pulmonary complications rate was 8% [n=31] with atelactasis [48%, n=16] followed by bronchospasm [25%, n=8] and pneumonia [16%, n=5] being the commonest complications. The duration of hospital stay was significantly longer [11 +/- 9 days, p=0.00] in patients with post-operative pulmonary complications and 29% [n=9] of them required mechanical ventilation. Logistic Regression analysis identified premorbid chronic chest conditions, emergency surgery and prolonged duration of anesthesia as significant predictors of post-operative pulmonary complications while age, gender, Body Mass Index, smoking history and non-pulmonary premorbids were insignificant in this regard. Post-operative pulmonary complications after non-cardiothoracic surgery are common and lead to increased morbidity and prolonged hospital stay in our setting. We identified pre-existing chest disease, prolonged anesthesia and emergency surgery as significant predictors of post-operative pulmonary complications