Post-discharge impact and cost-consequence analysis of prehabilitation in high-risk patients undergoing major abdominal surgery: secondary results from a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Prehabilitation may reduce postoperative complications, but sustainability of its health benefits and impact on costs needs further evaluation. Our aim was to assess the midterm clinical impact and costs from a hospital perspective of an endurance-exercise-training-based prehabilitation programme in high-risk patients undergoing major digestive surgery. METHODS: A cost-consequence analysis was performed using secondary data from a randomised, blinded clinical trial. The main outcomes assessed were (i) 30-day hospital readmissions, (ii) endurance time (ET) during an exercise testing, and (iii) physical activity by the Yale Physical Activity Survey (YPAS). Healthcare use for the cost analysis included costs of the prehabilitation programme, hospitalisation, and 30-day emergency room visits and hospital readmissions. RESULTS: We included 125 patients in an intention-to-treat analysis. Prehabilitation showed a protective effect for 30-day hospital readmissions (relative risk: 6.4; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.4-30.0). Prehabilitation-induced enhancement of ET and YPAS remained statistically significant between groups at the end of the 3 and 6 month follow-up periods, respectively (ΔET 205 [151] s; P=0.048) (ΔYPAS 7 [2]; P=0.016). The mean cost of the programme was €389 per patient and did not increment the total costs of the surgical process (€812; CI: 95% -878 - 2642; P=0.365). CONCLUSIONS: Prehabilitation may result in health value generation. Moreover, it appears to be a protective intervention for 30-day hospital readmissions, and its effects on aerobic capacity and physical activity may show sustainability at midterm. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT02024776.

Perfusión aislada de extremidad inferior con fuga de quimioterapéutico / Isolated limb perfusion with cytostatic drug leakage

La perfusión aislada de la extremidad es el tratamiento del melanoma en estadio iii, con metástasis en tránsito. Esta técnica permite la administración de citostáticos a concentración y temperatura eficaces, que no podrían ser administrados de manera sistémica debido a su toxicidad. La toxicidad debido al paso a la circulación sistémica de quimioterápico procedente de la extremidad es la complicación más grave a corto plazo, y se manifiesta mediante el síndrome de respuesta inflamatoria sistémica en el postoperatorio inmediato. La detección precoz de esta complicación y su manejo perioperatorio requiere un abordaje multidiscilplicar, en el que el anestesiólogo tiene un papel clave. Presentamos un caso de perfusión aislada de la extremidad inferior en el que el procedimiento tuvo que ser interrumpido por paso de factor de necrosis tumoral a la circulación sistémica, con grave repercusión hemodinámica intraoperatoria (AU)

Isolated limb perfusion is the treatment of stage III melanoma with in-transit metastasis. This technique allows the administration of cytostatics at an effective concentration and temperature, which could not be administered systemically because of their toxicity. The toxicity due to leakage of the chemotherapy agent from the limb into the systemic circulation is the most serious short-term complication, and is manifested by a systemic inflammatory response syndrome in the immediate post-intervention period. Early detection of this complication and its peri-operative management requires a multidisciplinary approach, in which the anaesthesiologist plays a key role. A case of isolated lower limb perfusion is reported in which the procedure had to be interrupted due to the passage of tumour necrosis factor into the systemic circulation, with severe intra-operative haemodynamic repercussions (AU)

Isolated limb perfusion with cytostatic drug leakage. / Perfusión aislada de extremidad inferior con fuga de quimioterapéutico.

Isolated limb perfusion is the treatment of stage III melanoma with in-transit metastasis. This technique allows the administration of cytostatics at an effective concentration and temperature, which could not be administered systemically because of their toxicity. The toxicity due to leakage of the chemotherapy agent from the limb into the systemic circulation is the most serious short-term complication, and is manifested by a systemic inflammatory response syndrome in the immediate post-intervention period. Early detection of this complication and its peri-operative management requires a multidisciplinary approach, in which the anaesthesiologist plays a key role. A case of isolated lower limb perfusion is reported in which the procedure had to be interrupted due to the passage of tumour necrosis factor into the systemic circulation, with severe intra-operative haemodynamic repercussions.

Rotation thromboelastometry velocity curve predicts blood loss during liver transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Patients undergoing liver transplantation (LT) have a high risk of bleeding. The goal of this study was to assess whether the first derivative of the velocity waveform (V-curve) generated by whole blood rotation thromboelastometry (ROTEM®) can predict blood loss during LT. METHODS: Preoperative V-curve parameters were retrospectively evaluated in 198 patients. Patients were divided into quartiles based on blood loss: low (LBL) in the first quartile and high (HBL) in the higher quartiles. A subgroup analysis was performed with patients stratified according to cirrhosis aetiology. A logistic regression model and receiver operator characteristics (ROC) curve were used to test the capacity of the V-curve, to discriminate between LBL and HBL. RESULTS: In the HBL group, the V-curve showed a lower maximum velocity of clot generation (MaxVel), a lower area under maximum velocity curve (AUC), and a higher time-to-maximum velocity (t-MaxVel) than in the LBL group. t-MaxVel was the only parameter showing a capacity to discriminate between the two groups, with a ROC area of 0.69 (95% CI; 0.62-0.74). The ROC area was 0.78 (95% CI; 0.75-0.83) for the 148 patients with cirrhosis, 0.73 (0.60-0.82) for patients with viral hepatitis and 0.83 (0.78-0.96) for patients with alcoholic hepatitis, the group that showed the best discriminative capacity. Moderate but significant correlations were found between all parameters of V-curve and BL. CONCLUSIONS: Pre-transplant V-curve obtained from ROTEM is a promising tool for predicting BL risk during LT, particularly in patients with cirrhosis.

Intraoperative Management of High-Risk Liver Transplant Recipients: Concerns and Challenges.

Liver transplantation (LT) offers patients with liver disease a real chance for long-term survival. In the past decade, successful survival after LT along with the Model for End-Stage Liver Disease-based allocation policy have increased willingness to accept patients with a higher risk profile and marginal organs and to prioritize the sickest patients on the waiting list. Therefore, the anesthesiologist now deals with very challenging patients. In the present review, we aimed to highlight key aspects of intraoperative LT management in high-risk patients and to place these aspects in the perspective of their impact on perioperative outcomes. Conservative standardized perioperative strategies mandate a switch toward accurate and tailored perioperative anesthetic care to maintain the steady improvement in recipient survival rates after LT. In our opinion, continuous assessment of fluid status and cardiac performance, strategies promoting graft decongestion, rational hemostatic management, and the identification of LT recipients with potential risk of vascular complications should constitute the cornerstone of intraoperative management.

Coagulation profile after plasma exchange using albumin as a replacement solution measured by thromboelastometry.

BACKGROUND: Significant decrease in fibrinogen and other coagulation proteins is observed after plasma exchange when albumin is used as a replacement fluid. Little is known about how those changes impact on thromboelastometry (TEM). The aim of this study was to describe the changes in TEM after performing plasma exchange procedures using 5% albumin as a replacement fluid and its correlation with the standard coagulation tests. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Consecutive patients treated with plasma exchange were prospectively recorded. We performed laboratory and TEM assays extrinsec patway [EXTEM and fibrin-based TEM (fibTEM)] from patient's blood sampled immediately before starting and immediately after finishing each procedure. Bleeding events during and after the procedure were monitored. Mann-Whitney U-test and Spearman's correlation test were used when needed. RESULTS: After plasma exchange, all TEM parameters decreased under normal limits, especially the clotting time (CT): 62% reduction (range: 35-84%) and the fibTEM: 50% (range: 62-27%); maximum clot firmness (MCF) decreased to a lesser extent, 23% (range: 29-21%). Main TEM parameters showed a strong correlation with fibrinogen values: CT, r = -0·81; MCF, r = 0·85; and fibTEM, r = 0·79. No bleeding complications were observed. CONCLUSION: A profound derangement of TEM parameters was observed after PE, evidenced by delay in the clot formation and reduction in the clot firmness. More studies are warranted to elucidate the clinical implications of derangement in TEM parameters in patients without concomitant coagulopathy.

Liver Transplant From Unexpected Donation After Circulatory Determination of Death Donors: A Challenge in Perioperative Management.

Unexpected donation after circulatory determination of death (uDCD) liver transplantation is a complex procedure, in particular when it comes to perioperative recipient management. However, very little has been published to date regarding intraoperative and immediate postoperative care in this setting. Herein, we compare perioperative events in uDCD liver recipients with those of a matched group of donation after brain death liver recipients. We demonstrate that the former group of recipients suffers significantly greater hemodynamic instability and derangements in coagulation following graft reperfusion. Based on our experience, we recommend a proactive recipient management strategy in uDCD liver transplantation that involves early use of vasopressor support; maintaining adequate intraoperative levels of red cells, platelets, and fibrinogen; and routinely administering tranexamic acid before graft reperfusion.

Systolic anterior motion of the mitral valve with left ventricular outflow tract obstruction: A case report in the perioperative setting / Movimiento sistólico anterior de la válvula mitral con obstrucción del tracto de salida del ventrículo izquierdo: un caso clínico en el perioperatorio

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Entrenamiento clínico con fibrobroncoscopio en anestesia. Diseño y resultados del curso según encuesta de autoevaluación / Fibreoptic clinical training in anaesthesia. Course design and results based on a self-assessment survey

Objetivos. La intubación con fibrobroncoscopio es la técnica de elección para intubar a pacientes con vía aérea difícil prevista y no prevista, que se pueden ventilar correctamente. Nuestro objetivo fue determinar si un curso práctico e individualizado con esta técnica era capaz de proporcionar suficiente entrenamiento y autoconfianza para permitir que los anestesiólogos participantes practiquen rutinariamente la intubación con fibrobroncoscopio tras el curso. Material y métodos. En nuestro centro se realiza un curso práctico e individualizado de intubación con fibrobroncoscopio en pacientes con anestesia general, con sedación en ventilación espontánea y mediante dispositivos extraglóticos. Entre 2005 y 2009 realizamos una encuesta vía e-mail entre los participantes para autovalorar la adquisición de habilidades durante el curso y su grado de satisfacción. Resultados. La encuesta se remitió a 77 alumnos, 6 meses después de la realización del curso, con una respuesta del 61%. Todos los alumnos que respondieron se consideraron hábiles con el manejo del fibrobroncoscopio al acabar el curso y, el 97% lo utilizó en su práctica habitual en pacientes con vía aérea difícil. Conclusión. Estos resultados sugieren que la realización de cursos de intubación con fibrobroncoscopio que, además de la teoría y la práctica en maniquíes, incluya pacientes con anestesia general y en ventilación espontánea, tiene una alta tasa de éxito en cuanto a la adquisición de habilidades y autosuficiencia de los participantes(AU)

Background and objective. Fibreoptic intubation is the technique of choice for resolving complications related to a difficult airway. Our aim was to determine whether a clinical-practice-based, individualized course provides sufficient training and confidence to allow anaesthetists to routinely practice fibreoptic intubation. Methods. Our hospital developed a clinical-practice-based, individualized course on fibreoptic intubation in general anaesthesia that provided practice in sedated spontaneously breathing patients and insertion through supraglottic devices. From 2005 to 2009, we e-mailed participants for response to an anonymous online self-assessment survey. We asked participants about the training outcomes and their overall degree of satisfaction. Results. Seventy-seven participants were sent the questionnaire six months after the course and 61% responded. All respondents considered themselves skilled in handling the bronchoscope at the end of the course and 97% used it in their routine practice in patients with difficult airways. Conclusions. These results suggest a high success rate can be expected from individually tailored fibreoptic intubation courses that supplement theory and mannequin experience with clinical practice(AU)

[Fibreoptic clinical training in anaesthesia. Course design and results based on a self-assessment survey]. / Entrenamiento clínico con fibrobroncoscopio en anestesia. Diseño y resultados del curso según encuesta de autoevaluación.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Fibreoptic intubation is the technique of choice for resolving complications related to a difficult airway. Our aim was to determine whether a clinical-practice-based, individualized course provides sufficient training and confidence to allow anaesthetists to routinely practice fibreoptic intubation. METHODS: Our hospital developed a clinical-practice-based, individualized course on fibreoptic intubation in general anaesthesia that provided practice in sedated spontaneously breathing patients and insertion through supraglottic devices. From 2005 to 2009, we e-mailed participants for response to an anonymous online self-assessment survey. We asked participants about the training outcomes and their overall degree of satisfaction. RESULTS: Seventy-seven participants were sent the questionnaire six months after the course and 61% responded. All respondents considered themselves skilled in handling the bronchoscope at the end of the course and 97% used it in their routine practice in patients with difficult airways. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest a high success rate can be expected from individually tailored fibreoptic intubation courses that supplement theory and mannequin experience with clinical practice.

[An established anesthesia team-care model: over 12000 cases in a digestive endoscopy unit]. / Consolidación de un modelo asistencial basado en un equipo de anestesia: experiencia en más de 12.000 casos en una Unidad de Endoscopia Digestiva.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The growing demand for digestive and other endoscopic procedures outside the operating room, both in terms of type of endoscopy and number of patients, requires reorganization of the anesthesiology department's workload. We describe 2 years of our hospital digestive endoscopy unit's experience with a now well-established care model involving both anesthesiologists and nurse anesthetists. MATERIAL AND METHODS: After previously reviewing the medical records of outpatients and conducting a telephone interview about state of health, nurse anesthetists administered a combination of propofol and remifentanil through a target-controlled infusion system under an anesthesiologist's direct supervision. RESULTS: The ratio of anesthesiologists to nurses ranged from 1:2 to 1:3 according to the complexity of the examination procedure. Over 12000 endoscopies (simple to advanced) in a total of 11853 patients were performed under anesthesia during the study period. Airway management maneuvers were required by 4.9% of the patients; 0.18% required bag ventilation for respiratory depression, and 0.084% required bolus doses of a vasopressor to treat hypotension or atropine to treat bradycardia. The procedure had to be halted early in 9 patients (0.07%). No patient required orotracheal intubation and none died. Nor were any complications related to sedation recorded. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that this care model can safely accommodate a large caseload in anesthesia at an optimum level of quality.

Equipamiento necesario para una anestesia segura / Equipment required for safe anesthesia

Para proporcionar una atención de calidad ha de haber organización y comunicación entre todos los profesionales que atienden al paciente. Aplicar la cultura de la calidad, supervisar de forma continuada que todo lo necesario está disponible, confirmar la identidad del paciente, su patología y la intervención exacta planificada y detectar y comunicar los incidentes adversos es muy importante para conseguir avanzar en seguridad. En este contexto, el cuidado anestésico es un continuum iniciado en la preanestesia, seguido en el intraoperatorio y con componentes postoperatorios (AU)

To provide quality care has to be organization and communication among all professionals attending the patient. Implement a culture of quality, continuously monitor that everything needed is available, confirm the identity of the patient, the exact pathology and intervention planned and identifying and reporting adverse events is very important for success in security. In this context the anesthetic is a continuum which began in the pre-anesthesia, followed in the intraoperative and postoperative components (AU)

Short-term effects of sleeve gastrectomy on type 2 diabetes mellitus in severely obese subjects.

BACKGROUND: Data on the effectiveness of sleeve gastrectomy (SG) in improving or resolving type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are scarce. METHODS: A 4-month prospective study was conducted on the changes in glucose homeostasis in 35 severely obese T2DM subjects undergoing laparoscopic SG (LSG) and 50 subjects undergoing laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGBP), matched for DM duration, type of DM treatment, and glycemic control. RESULTS: At 4-months after surgery, LSG and LRYGBP operated subjects lost a similar amount of weight (respectively, 20.6 +/- 0.7% and 21.0 +/- 0.6%). T2DM had resolved respectively in 51.4% and 62.0% of the LSG and LRYGBP operated subjects (P = 0.332). A shorter preoperative DM duration (P < 0.05), a preoperative DM treatment not including pharmacological agents, and a better pre-surgical fasting plasma glucose (P < 0.01) or HbAlc (P < 0.01), were significantly associated with a better type 2 DM outcome in both surgical groups. CONCLUSIONS: Our data show that LSG and LRYGBP result in a similar rate of type 2 DM resolution at 4-months after surgery. Moreover, our data suggest that mechanisms beyond weight loss may be implicated in DM resolution following LSG and LRYGBP.

Liver transplantation in high-risk patients: hepatopulmonary syndrome and portopulmonary hypertension.

Two pulmonary vascular disorders, considered mutually exclusive, may be present in candidates for orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). On the one hand, hepatopulmonary syndrome (HPS), with a prevalence about 20% in end-stage liver disease, is characterized by pulmonary vascular dilatation and abnormal gas exchange. On the other hand, portopulmonary hypertension (POPH), a process defined by pulmonary hypertension associated with portal hypertension, is less common than HPS (4%). These entities have very distinct clinical implications; whereas HPS is clinically characterized by respiratory symptoms that evolve to severe hypoxemia, patients with POPH are commonly asymptomatic, frequently diagnosed in the setting of OLT, and the symptoms appear when there is hemodynamic compromise. The pathogenesis of both entities is a putative mechanism, the imbalance of vasoactive substances in pulmonary vessels. The role of OLT to reverse these vascular disorders is controversial, although complete resolution of HPS and, less frequently, POPH following OLT has been reported. The recognition that the presence of both HPS and POPH is an important cause of morbidity and mortality among recipients of OLT has resulted in a change in the policy to select OLT candidates. Accurate identification of patients with pulmonary vascular disorders associated with liver disease should be the first step in the management of OLT candidates. Because the determinants of the prognosis of OLT in the setting of these pulmonary vascular changes have not been well established, an accurate cardiopulmonary evaluation with careful assessment of pulmonary gas exchange (in HPS) and right ventricular function (in POPH) of potential OLT recipients is mandatory before the procedure.

Role of dopamine in renal dysfunction during laparoscopic surgery.

BACKGROUND: Sympathetic vascular insult and hemodynamic changes represent the most reliable explanation of renal impairment resulting from acute intraabdominal pressure. We evaluated the effects of low-dose dopamine administration during a long-lasting surgical laparoscopic procedure. METHODS: For this study 40, patients submitted to a colorectal laparoscopic procedure with 15 mmHg of intraabdominal pressure were randomly allocated to two groups: 20 receiving 2 mg/kg/min of dopamine and 20 receiving the same perfusion of saline. Hemodynamic parameters, renal function, urinary output, and creatinine clearance, were studied. RESULTS: The hemodynamic parameters were similar in both groups. The urinary output decreased during the intraoperative period only the saline group (p = 0.4). Then 2 h postoperatively, it increased in both groups, and no statistically significant differences were found between the groups. The creatinine clearance decreased in both groups during the intraoperative time, but it was worse in the saline group (-28 +/- 120 vs -194 +/- 106; p = 0.022). During the postoperative period, both groups showed improvement, but in control group the values remained lower than at baseline (p = 0.04), and significantly lower than in the dopamine group (230 +/- 337 vs 100 +/- 192; p = 0.012). CONCLUSIONS: An intrabdominal pressure of 15 mmHg induces a time-limited renal dysfunction, and low doses of dopamine could prevent this undesirable effect.

Moderate primary pulmonary hypertension in patients undergoing liver transplantation.

Primary pulmonary hypertension (PPH) in patients with hepatic cirrhosis is often considered an unacceptable condition for liver transplantation because of increased morbidity and mortality during the procedure. We studied the incidence, characteristics, and final outcome of patients with PPH undergoing liver transplantation in our institution. Among the 226 patients undergoing 257 liver transplantations, eight (3.5%) fulfilled the conditions of PPH and responded to vasodilator therapy. Nitroglycerin 1.5 micrograms/kg produced a decrease in pulmonary vascular resistance index (PVRI) and mean pulmonary arterial pressure (MPAP) of 20% and 15%, respectively. Patients with PPH when compared with a matched group of patients without PPH had markedly increased hemodynamic changes in PVRI (P = 0.004) and MPAP (P = 0.0001) during and after the procedure. All patients with PPH required pulmonary vasodilator therapy after reperfusion of the new liver, while none in the group of patients without PPH required this therapy. Furthermore, after graft reperfusion, patients with PPH in which venovenous bypass was not used (n = 3), had a more compromised right ventricular function with a greater increase of central venous pressure (CVP) (90%) and MPAP (140%) when compared with patients with bypass or preservation of the recipient's vena cava (n = 5) in whom the increase of CVP and MPAP was 50% and 60%, respectively. Moderate PPH without a fixed level of pulmonary hypertension in patients undergoing liver transplantation is not related to an adverse outcome.