Nudging strategies to influence prescribers' behavior toward reducing opioid prescriptions: a systematic scoping review.

OBJECTIVE: This systematic scoping review aimed to map the literature on the use of various nudging strategies to influence prescriber behavior toward reducing opioid prescriptions across diverse healthcare settings. METHODS: A systematic database search was conducted using seven electronic databases. Only articles published in English were included. A total of 2234 articles were identified, 35 of which met the inclusion criteria. Two independent dimensions were used to describe nudging strategies according to user action and the timing of their implementation. RESULTS: Six nudging strategies were identified. The most common strategy was default choices, followed by increasing salience of information or incentives and providing feedback. Moreover, 32 studies used the electronic health record as an implementation method, and 29 reported significant results. Most of the effective interventions were multicomponent interventions (i.e., combining nudge strategies and non-nudge components). CONCLUSIONS: Most nudging strategies used a passive approach, such as defaulting prescriptions to generics and requiring no action from the prescriber. Although reported as effective, this approach often operates under the prescriber's radar. Future research should explore the ethical implications of nudging strategies.INPLASY registration number: 202420082.

Postoperative Recovery in the Youngest: Beyond Technology.

BACKGROUND: Measuring and interpreting vital signs in pediatric patients recovering from anaesthesia, particularly those up to 36 months old, is challenging. Nurses' decision-making regarding the level of monitoring must balance patient safety with individualized care. This study aimed to explore the perceptions of critical care nurses and registered nurse anesthetists regarding their experiences and actions when making decisions about vital sign monitoring for children in post-anesthesia care units (PACUs). METHODS: A qualitative study utilizing the critical incident technique was conducted. Interviews were performed with a purposeful sample of 17 critical care nurses and registered nurse anaesthetists from two hospitals. RESULTS: Nurses reported that the rationale for decisions concerning the need for vital sign monitoring in children was both adequate and inadequate. Actions were taken to adjust the monitoring of vital signs, optimizing conditions for assessment and ensuring the child's safe recovery. CONCLUSIONS: The complexity of accurately monitoring children makes it challenging for nurses in the PACU to adhere to guidelines. Evidence-based care and safety are compromised when technology has limitations and is not adapted for paediatric use, leading to a greater reliance on experience and clinical assessment. This reliance on experience is crucial for reliable assessment but also entails accepting greater risks.

How to Achieve Highly Professional Care in the Postoperative Ward: The Care of Infants and Toddlers.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to describe the experiences of critical care nurses (CCNs) and registered nurse anesthetists (RNAs) when monitoring and observing infants and toddlers recovering from anesthesia. DESIGN: A qualitative design with a critical incident approach. METHODS: Semistructured individual interviews were conducted with a purposeful sample of CCNs and RNAs (n = 17) from postanesthesia care units at two hospitals. The critical incident technique approach was used to guide the interviews, and data were analyzed inductively using thematic analysis. FINDINGS: The main finding was the CCNs' and RNAs' description of how they "watch over the children and stay close" to provide emotional and physical safety. CCNs' and RNAs' experiences of observing and managing the children's small, immature airways were reflected in the theme "using situation awareness of the small, immature airways." The theme "understanding emergence agitation" describes the challenge that arises when children are anxious, feel insecure, and have pain, and the theme "having parents nearby" shows the necessity and value of involving parents in their children's care. CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this study suggest that caring for infants and toddlers recovering from anesthesia requires experience and both technical and nontechnical skills. These are prerequisites for achieving readiness for planning, setting priorities, and adapting one's behavior if an adverse event occurs. Alertness and the ability to solve acute problems and make quick decisions are essential because of the risks associated with children's small, immature airways, as is the ability to understand and respond to emergence agitation. Having parents nearby is equally important for creating the conditions for compassionate child- and family-centered care.

Red-Haired People's Altered Responsiveness to Pain, Analgesics, and Hypnotics: Myth or Fact?-A Narrative Review.

Red hair has been linked to altered sensitivity to pain, analgesics, and hypnotics. This alteration may be impacted by variants in the melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R) gene, which are mainly found in redheads. The aim of this narrative review was to explore and present the current state of knowledge on red hair and its plausible associations with altered responsiveness to pain, analgesics, and hypnotics. Structured searches in the PubMed, CINAHL Complete, and Scopus electronic databases were conducted. Evidence suggests that women with red hair have an increased sensitivity to pain. Conversely, data also indicate a higher pain tolerance in homozygous carriers of MC1R variant alleles. Varied responses to analgesia have been reported, with both increased analgesic responsiveness in homozygous carriers of MC1R variant alleles and less analgesia in redheads. Data indicate an increased need for hypnotics in redheads. However, failed attempts to find statistical associations between red hair and altered responsiveness to hypnotics are also evident. Even though there seems to be an association between red hair and an altered responsiveness to pain, analgesics, and/or hypnotics, the results of this narrative review are inconclusive. Further research studies with larger populations and MC1R testing are needed.

Patients' perioperative experiences of an opioid-free versus opioid-based care pathway for laparoscopic bariatric surgery: A qualitative study.

Background: Despite recent evidence supporting the adoption of opioid-free anaesthetic and analgesic alternatives in the perioperative context, opioid-based regimens remain standard of care. There is limited knowledge about the patients' perioperative experiences of bariatric surgery, with no study yet investigating their experiences within an opioid-free care pathway. Objective: We aimed to describe similarities and differences in patients' perioperative experiences of undergoing bariatric surgery with either an opioid-free or opioid-based care pathway. Design: A qualitative interview study. Setting: A strategic sample of patients enrolled in an ongoing randomized controlled trial investigating the effects of opioid-free anaesthesia for bariatric surgery were recruited. In the randomized controlled trial, participants were randomized to either opioid-based anaesthesia or opioid-free anaesthesia, including transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation as primary postoperative pain management. Participants: Twenty patients were interviewed 3 months after surgery: 10 participants in the opioid-free group versus 10 in the opioid-based group. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted between December 2020 and February 2022 and analysed with qualitative content analysis. Results: The analysis yielded four categories and 12 subcategories. In Category 1, participants shared diverse emotions before surgery, including anticipation of a healthier life, but also apprehensions and feelings of failure. In Category 2, describing liminality of general anaesthesia, there were similar descriptions of struggling to remember the anaesthesia induction and struggling to surface when recovering from anaesthesia. However, some participants in the opioid-free group shared descriptions of struggling to keep control, describing accentuated memories of the anaesthesia induction. Category 3, managing your pain, showed similar experiences and strategies but different narrations of pain management, with the opioid-free group stating that transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation works but not when it really hurts, and the opioid-based group describing confidence in but awareness of opioids. Throughout the overall perioperative time period, participants acknowledged Category 4, a patient-professional presence, stating that preparations boost the feeling of confidence before surgery and that they felt confidence in a vulnerable situation although vulnerability challenges communication. Conclusions: We highlighted the overall similarities in perioperative experiences of patients undergoing bariatric surgery. However, the differences in experiences during opioid-free anaesthesia induction need to be addressed in further implementation and research studies investigating strategies to reduce the sense of loss of control. More research is needed to facilitate the implementation of opioid-free treatment strategies into clinical practice and improve the patient care experience.

Registered Nurse Anesthetists' Perceptions of Providing Care Within a Global Health Framework: A Qualitative Study.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate how Registered Nurse Anesthetists (RNAs) who have been working for nongovernmental organizations in low- and middle-income countries perceive their role in global health. DESIGN: A qualitative design was used in this study. METHODS: Data were collected by means of semistructured interviews with 11 participants who met the inclusion criteria, and qualitative analysis of the interview content was performed. FINDINGS: The analysis resulted in three categories and six subcategories. Of the categories, "Using skills" includes the respondents' varying levels of responsibility, tasks, and perceptions of how far they are applying their expertise. "Encountering new cultures" is about adapting to new cultural norms in nursing, education, and cooperation in the international team. "Promoting change through volunteerism" comprises personal and professional development, and impact - both local and potentially global. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the relevance of RNAs in global health and emphasizes the cultural encounters, exchanges, and challenges associated with volunteer medical missions. RNAs' knowledge of, and humble approach to the host country's culture are essential for their ability to provide nursing care, engage in cooperation and training, and promote global health in a high-quality, sustainable and effective way.

Spectral edge frequency during general anaesthesia: A narrative literature review.

Previous studies have attempted to determine the depth of anaesthesia with different anaesthetic agents using electroencephalogram (EEG) measurements with variable success. Measuring depth of anaesthesia is confounded by the complexity of the EEG and the fact that different agents create different pattens. A narrative review was undertaken to examine the available research evidence on the effect and reliability of spectral edge frequency (SEF) for assessing the depth of anaesthesia in adult patients under general anaesthesia. A systematic search of the PubMed®, Scopus®, CINAHL and Cochrane databases identified six randomized controlled trials and five observational studies. The findings of these studies suggest that SEF varies according to the anaesthetic drugs used. Remifentanil and age are two factors that can affect SEF, while other opioids and benzodiazepine (administered separately) seem to have no effect. No patients experienced intraoperative awareness. However, this does not indicate that SEF can provide full protection against it and the number of articles in which intraoperative awareness was studied was too small to afford any certainty. None of the studies demonstrated a reliable SEF interval associated with adequate general anaesthesia. SEF must be adapted to the anaesthetic drug used, the patient's age and state while under general anaesthesia.

Total opioid-free general anaesthesia can improve postoperative outcomes after surgery, without evidence of adverse effects on patient safety and pain management: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Opioid-based treatment is used to manage stress responses during surgery and postoperative pain. However, opioids have both acute and long-term side effects, calling for opioid-free anaesthetic strategies. This meta-analysis compares adverse events, postoperative recovery, discharge time from post-anaesthesia care unit, and postoperative pain, nausea, vomiting, and opioid consumption between strict opioid-free and opioid-based general anaesthesia. METHODS: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis. We searched PubMed, Embase, Cinahl, Cochrane Library, selected reference lists, and Google Scholar. We included randomised controlled trials (RCTs) published between January 2000 and February 2021 with at least one opioid-free study arm, i.e. no opioids administered preoperatively, during anaesthesia induction, before skin closure, or before emergence from anaesthesia. RESULTS: The study comprised 1934 patients from 26 RCTs. Common interventions included laparoscopic gynaecological surgery, upper gastrointestinal surgery, and breast surgery. There is firm evidence that opioid-free anaesthesia significantly reduced adverse postoperative events (OR 0.32, 95% CI 0.22 to 0.46, I2  = 56%, p < 0.00001), mainly driven by decreased nausea (OR 0.27, (0.17 to 0.42), p < 0.00001) and vomiting (OR 0.22 (0.11 to 0.41), p < 0.00001). Postoperative opioid consumption was significantly lower in the opioid-free group (-6.00 mg (-8.52 to -3.48), p < 0.00001). There was no significant difference in length of post-anaesthesia care unit stay and overall postoperative pain between groups. CONCLUSIONS: Opioid-free anaesthesia can improve postoperative outcomes in several surgical settings without evidence of adverse effects on patient safety and pain management. There is a need for more evidence-based non-opioid anaesthetic protocols for different types of surgery as well as postoperative phases.

Nurse anesthetists' experiences using smart glasses to monitor patients' vital signs during anesthesia care: A qualitative study.

PURPOSE: To describe nurse anesthetists' experiences using smart glasses to monitor patients' vital signs during anesthesia care. METHODS: Data was collected through individual semi-structured interviews with seven nurse anesthetists who had used smart glasses, with a customized application for monitoring vital signs, during clinical anesthesia care. Data was analyzed using thematic content analysis. RESULTS: An overarching theme became evident during analysis; Facing and embracing responsibility. Being a nurse anesthetist entails a great responsibility, and the participants demonstrated that they shouldered this responsibility with pride. The theme was divided in two sub-themes. The first of these, A new way of working, comprised the categories Adoption and Utility. This involved incorporating smart glasses into existing routines in order to provide safe anesthesia care. The second sub-theme, Encountering side effects, consisted of the categories Obstacles and Personal affect. This sub-theme concerned the possibility to use smart glasses as intended, as well as the affect on nurse anesthetists as users. CONCLUSION: Smart glasses improved access to vital signs and enabled continuous monitoring regardless of location. Continued development and improvement, both in terms of the application software and the hardware, are necessary for smart glasses to meet nurse anesthetists' needs in clinical practice.

Cerebral autoregulation in infants during sevoflurane anesthesia for craniofacial surgery.

BACKGROUND: Data on cerebral pressure-flow autoregulation in the youngest children are scarce. We studied the correlation between mean arterial pressure and cerebral tissue oxygen saturation (rSO2 ) by near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in patients undergoing nose, lip, and palate surgery. AIM: We tested the hypothesis that cerebral pressure-flow autoregulation is impaired in children less than 1 year undergoing surgery and general anesthesia with sevoflurane under controlled mechanical ventilation. METHOD: After approval from the Ethical board, 15 children aged <1 year were included. Before anesthesia induction, a NIRS sensor (INVOSTM , Medtronic, Minneapolis, USA) was placed over the cerebral frontal lobe. Frontal rSO2 , a surrogate for cerebral perfusion, mean arterial pressure, end-tidal CO2 - and sevoflurane concentration, and arterial oxygen saturation were sampled every minute after the induction. A repeated measures correlation analysis was performed to study correlation between mean arterial pressure and cerebral rSO2 , and the repeated measures correlation coefficient (rrm ) was calculated. RESULTS: Fifteen patients, aged 7.7 ± 1.9 months, were studied. rSO2 showed a positive correlation with mean arterial pressure ([95% CI: 9.0-12.1], P < 0.001) with a moderate to large effect size (rrm  = 0.462), indicating an impaired cerebral pressure-flow autoregulation. The slopes of the rSO2 -mean arterial pressure correlations were steeper in patients who were hypotensive (mean arterial pressure <50 mm Hg) compared to patients having a mean arterial pressure ≥50 mm Hg, indicating that at lower mean arterial pressure, the cerebral pressure dependence of cerebral oxygenation is even more pronounced. CONCLUSION: During sevoflurane anesthesia in the youngest pediatric patients, cerebral perfusion is pressure-dependent, suggesting that the efficiency of the cerebral blood flow autoregulation is limited.

Smart Glasses for Anesthesia Care: Initial Focus Group Interviews with Specialized Health Care Professionals.

PURPOSE: Smart glasses are a kind of wearable technology that gives users sustained, hands-free access to data and can transmit and receive information wirelessly. Earlier studies have suggested that smart glasses have the potential to improve patient safety in anesthesia care. Research regarding health care professionals' views of the potential use of smart glasses in anesthesia care is limited. The purpose of this study was to describe anesthesia health care professionals' views of smart glasses before clinical use. DESIGN: A qualitative descriptive study. METHODS: Data were collected from focus group interviews and analyzed using thematic content analysis. FINDINGS: Three categories of participants' views of smart glasses were created during the analysis: views of integrating smart glasses in clinical setting; views of customized functionality of smart glasses; and views of being a user of smart glasses. One theme, striving for situational control, was identified in the analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Smart glasses were seen as a tool that can impact and improve access to patient-related information, and aid health care professionals in their struggle to gain situational control during anesthesia care. These are factors related to increased patient safety.

Agreement between frontal and occipital regional cerebral oxygen saturation in infants during surgery and general anesthesia an observational study.

BACKGROUND: Advances in perioperative pediatric care have resulted in an increased number of procedures requiring anesthesia. During anesthesia and surgery, the patient is subjected to factors that affect the circulatory homeostasis, which can influence oxygenation of the brain. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is an easy applicable noninvasive method for monitoring of regional tissue oxygenation (rScO2%). Alternate placements for NIRS have been investigated; however, no alternative cranial placements have been explored. AIM: To evaluate the agreement between frontal and occipital recordings of rScO2% in infants using INVOSTM during surgery and general anesthesia. METHOD: A standard frontal monitoring of rScO2% with NIRS was compared with occipital rScO2% measurements in fifteen children at an age <1 year, ASA 1-2, undergoing cleft lip and/or palate surgery during general anesthesia with sevoflurane. An agreement analysis was performed according to Bland and Altman. RESULTS: Mean values of frontal and occipital rScO2% at baseline were largely similar (70.7 ± 4.77% and 69.40 ± 5.04%, respectively). In the majority of the patients, the frontal and occipital recordings of rScO2 changed in parallel. There was a moderate positive correlation between frontal and occipital rScO2% INVOS™ readings (rho[ρ]: 0.513, P < .01). The difference between frontal and occipital rScO2 ranged from -31 to 28 with a mean difference (bias) of -0.15%. The 95% limit of agreement was -18.04%-17.74%. The error between frontal and occipital rScO2 recordings was 23%. CONCLUSION: The agreement between frontal and occipital recordings of brain rScO2% in infants using INVOSTM during surgery and general anesthesia was acceptable. In surgical procedures where the frontal region of the head is not available for monitoring, occipital recordings of rScO2% could be an option for monitoring.

The choice between surgical scrubbing and sterile covering before or after induction of anaesthesia: A prospective study.

Background: Day surgery is increasing, and safe and effective logistics are sought. One part of the in-theatre logistics commonly discussed is whether surgical scrub and sterile covering should be done before or after induction of anaesthesia. The aim of the present study was to compare the impact of surgical scrub and sterile covering before vs. after the induction of anaesthesia in male patients scheduled for open hernia repair.    Methods: This is a prospective randomised study. Sixty ASA 1-3 patients scheduled for open hernia repair were randomised to surgical scrub and sterile covering before or after induction of anaesthesia; group "awake" and group "anaesthetised", respectively. Patients and theatre nurses were asked about their experiences and willingness to have the same logistics on further potential surgeries, through a survey provided before post-surgery. Duration of anaesthesia, surgery, theatre time, recovery room stay and time to discharge was studied. Results: There was no difference in the patients' assessment of quality of care, and only one patient in the awake group would prefer to be anaesthetised on a future procedure. All nurses found pre-anaesthesia scrubbing acceptable as routine. The duration of anaesthesia was shorter and doses of propofol and remifentanil were reduced by 10 and 13%, respectively, in the awake group. Time in recovery area was significantly reduced in the awake group (p<0.05), but time to discharge was not different. Conclusion: Surgical scrub and sterile covering before the induction of anaesthesia can be done safely and without jeopardising patients' quality of care.

Anaesthesia for open wrist fracture surgery in adults/elderly.

Anaesthetic technique for open surgery of acute distal for arm fracture in adults/elderly is not well defined. Regional anaesthesia, general anaesthesia or a combined general and regional block may be considered. General anaesthetic technique, the timing and drug/drug combination for the regional block must also be considered. This is a study around published studies assessing anaesthtic technique for wrist surgery. A systematic database search was performed and papers describing the effect of anaesthetic techniques were included. We found sparse evidence for what anaesthetic technique is optimal for open wrist fracture repair. In total only six studies were found using our inclusion criteria, which all supported the short term, early recovery benefits of regional anaesthesia as part of multi-modal analgesia. More protracted outcomes and putting the type of block into context of quality of recovery and patients' satisfaction is lacking in the literature. The risk for a pain rebound when the block vanishes should also be acknowledged. Therefore, further high quality studies are warranted concerning the anaesthetic technique for this type of surgery.

Upper extremity nerve block: how can benefit, duration, and safety be improved? An update.

Upper extremity blocks are useful as both sole anaesthesia and/or a supplement to general anaesthesia and they further provide effective postoperative analgesia, reducing the need for opioid analgesics. There is without doubt a renewed interest among anaesthesiologists in the interscalene, supraclavicular, infraclavicular, and axillary plexus blocks with the increasing use of ultrasound guidance. The ultrasound-guided technique visualising the needle tip and solution injected reduces the risk of side effects, accidental intravascular injection, and possibly also trauma to surrounding tissues. The ultrasound technique has also reduced the volume needed in order to gain effective block. Still, single-shot plexus block, although it produces effective anaesthesia, has a limited duration of postoperative analgesia and a number of adjuncts have been tested in order to prolong analgesia duration. The addition of steroids, midazolam, clonidine, dexmedetomidine, and buprenorphine has been studied, all being off-label when administered by perineural injection, and the potential neurotoxicity needs further study. The use of perineural catheters is an effective option to improve and prolong the postoperative analgesic effect. Upper extremity plexus blocks have an obvious place as a sole anaesthetic technique or as a powerful complement to general anaesthesia, reducing the need for analgesics and hypnotics intraoperatively, and provide effective early postoperative pain relief. Continuous perineural infusion is an effective option to prolong the effects and improve postoperative quality.

At-home monitoring after surgery/anaesthesia - a challenge.

RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: Day surgery is evolving, with a majority of recoveries occurring at home. There is, in parallel, an evolution in telemedical technology. The aim of the present project was to identify patients' willingness to use predefined follow-up techniques and to clinically test preferred techniques at home using a two-step study.┅ METHODS: In Part I, a paper-based questionnaire study of identified patients' attitudes with three follow-up techniques was used. In Part II, a feasibility test of a mobile (smart-phone) application for follow-up at home was used. RESULTS: Part I showed overall positive attitudes to telemedical follow-ups. Part II showed the preference for a follow-up technique with a mobile application was not fully consistent with the clinical study of the smart-phone app, where there was a large non-response. The application provided safe transfer of data to the hospital and helped make it easy to retrieve and analyse patient self-assessment of recovery. This application is one-way directed, and no feedback to the patient was given, which may have influenced the non-response. CONCLUSION: Bringing telemedicine into follow-up after surgery/anaesthesia is requested, and furthermore, the feasibility study on day surgery presented here shows that it is technically easy to perform and will provide robust information. It should be noted that further studies are needed in order to find better patient cooperation.

Evaluation of the Postoperative Quality of Recovery Scale test and re-test in Swedish among healthy volunteers.

Introduction Patient outcome measures are required to assess the quality of healthcare. Tools for a patients' self-assessment of quality of recovery, during perioperative care, have been developed during the last decade. The Postoperative Quality of Recovery Scale (PostopQRS) questionnaire is one of the most well-accepted and validated tools available. Here we assess the PostopORS questionnaire in Swedish. Methods Sixty-one students from the Bachelor Program in Nursing, (50 female and 11 male; mean age, 25; range, 21-46) filled in the Swedish translation of the PostopQRS questionnaire twice. They also evaluated whether they found the queries easy to understand and respond to .Results The participants found the Swedish translation of the PostopQRS questionnaire easy to read and understand. There were minor differences in test responses between the initial test and the re-test 48 hours later. We found that the PostopQRS questionnaire has some background noise; 12 out of 61 participants (20%) reported mild pain, 25 (41%) scored some depression and 33 scored mild anxiety (54%). The cognitive domain showed a learning effect between tests in "word recall" and "word generation", while "digit recall forward" and "digit recall backward" showed no change. We found a difference in cognitive test performance with age; younger participants had higher mean cognitive test scores compared to participants >30 years. Overall, nine participants showed a decrease in re-test scores; two experienced a mild increase in pain; one experienced a mild increase in anxiety; and six performed more poorly on cognitive tests. Conclusion The Swedish translation of the PostopQRS was found to be adequate for use in the assessment of quality of recovery, and the questions were well understood by participants. Our study shows the importance of baseline testing for assessment of recovery, since recovery is assessed as a return to or improvement in each individual's baseline score.

Post-operative nausea and vomiting: update on predicting the probability and ways to minimize its occurrence, with focus on ambulatory surgery.

Postoperative nausea and vomiting "the little big problem" after surgery/anaesthesia is still a common side-effect compromising quality of care, delaying discharge and resumption of activities of daily living. A huge number of studies have been conducted in order to identify risk factors, preventive and therapeutic strategies. The Apfel risk score and a risk based multi-modal PONV prophylaxis is advocated by evidence based guidelines as standards of care but is not always followed. Tailored anaesthesia and pain management avoiding too liberal dosing of anaesthetics and opioid analgesics is also essential in order to reduce risk. Thus multi-modal opioid sparing analgesia and a risk based PONV prophylaxis should be provided in order to minimise the occurrence. There is however still no way to guarantee an individual patient that he or she should not experience any PONV. Further studies are needed trying to identify risk factors and ways to tailor the individual patient prevention/therapy are warranted. The present paper provides a review around prediction, factors influencing the occurrence and the management of PONV with a focus on the ambulatory surgical patient.

Routines for reducing the occurrence of emergence agitation during awakening in children, a national survey.

Emergence agitation following anesthesia in children is not uncommon. It is, although generally self-limiting, associated with both patient and parents distress. We conducted a national survey around the management of behavioral and neurocognitive disturbances after surgery/anesthesia including a case scenario about a child at risk for emergence reaction. Premedication with clonidine or midazolam would have been used 58 and 37% of responders respectively. A propofol based anesthesia was the most common anesthetic technique, however sevoflurane or desflurane was an option for 45 and 8% of responders. Before awakening 65% would have administered an opioid, 48% a low-dose of propofol and 25% clonidine. Sign or symptoms of behavioral disturbance was not assessed by standardize assessment tools. A majority of Swedish anesthesia personnel would undertake some preventive action when handling a child at risk for an emergence reaction, the preventive measure differed and it seems as there is an obvious room for further improvements.

AAI-guided anaesthesia is associated with lower incidence of 24-h MMSE < 25 and may impact the IL-6 response.

INTRODUCTION: Trauma stress and neuro-inflammation caused by surgery/anaesthesia releases cytokines. This study analysed impact of Auditory Evoked Potential Index (AAI) depth-of-anaesthesia titration on the early plasma IL-6 release after eye surgery under general anaesthesia. METHOD: This is a subgroup analysis of a prospective randomized study on the effect of auditory evoked potential guided anaesthesia for eye surgery. Plasma IL-6 levels taken before, 5 and 24 h after end of surgery from 450 patients undergoing elective ophthalmic surgery under desflurane anaesthesia were analysed. Minimal mental state examination (MMSE) was also tested at 24-h. RESULTS: IL- 6 increased significantly at both 5 and further at 24 h after surgery (3.2, 4.5 and 5.1 base-line, 5 and 24-h respectively), the IL-6 increase showed different patterns between the 2 groups; IL-6 was significantly increased in the control group of patients between preoperative baseline and 24 h after surgery (p = 0.008) also between 5 h and 24 h, (p = 0.006) after surgery while the AAI-group had only minor non-significant changes. The 18 patients that showed a 24-h MMSE score less than 25 had a significant higher 24-h IL-6 compared to the 390 patients with a MMSE score > 24 (p = 0.002). CONCLUSION: The IL-6 increase after surgery was less pronounced in patients where anaesthesia was titrated by AAI compared to anaesthesia adjusted on clinical signs only. IL-6 were also found to be higher in patients with a MMSE < 25 at 24-h. Further studies are warranted evaluating the role of depth of anaesthesia monitoring on the risk for early cognitive impairment and neuro-inflammation. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NA/study were conducted between January 2005-April 2008.