Development, Validation, and Results of a Survey of Personal Electronic Device Use Among 299 Anesthesia Providers From a Single Institution.

BACKGROUND: The pattern of perioperative use of personal electronic devices (PEDs) among anesthesia providers in the United States is unknown. METHODS: We developed a 31-question anonymous survey of perioperative PED use that was sent to 813 anesthesiologists, anesthesiology residents, and certified registered nurse anesthetists at 3 sites within one health system. The electronic survey assessed patterns of PED use inside the operating room (OR), outside the OR, and observed in others. Questions were designed to explore the various purposes for PED use, the potential impact of specific hospital policies or awareness of medicolegal risk on PED use, and whether PED was a source of perioperative distraction. RESULTS: The overall survey response rate was 36.8% (n = 299). With regard to often/frequent PED activity inside the OR, 24% reported texting, 5% reported talking on the phone, and 11% reported browsing on the Internet. With regard to often/frequent PED activity outside the OR, 88% reported texting, 26% reported talking on the phone, and 63% reported browsing the Internet. With regard to often/frequent PED activity observed in others, 52% reported others texting, 14% reported others talking on the phone, and 34% reported others browsing the Internet. Two percent of respondents self-reported a distraction compared to 15% who had observed a distraction in others. Eighty percent of respondents recognized PED as a potential distraction for patient safety. CONCLUSIONS: Our data reinforce that PED use is prevalent among anesthesia providers.

Preventing Acute Kidney Injury and Hypotension After Elective Total Joint Arthroplasty Is Possible: An Update to an Established Multidisciplinary Protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Based on preoperative and perioperative risk factors that have been found to correlate with the development of acute kidney injury (AKI), our institution developed a protocol aimed at managing and improving outcomes in all elective THA and TKA patients. This article highlights the continued success and growth of our protocol aimed at decreasing AKI and hypotension in elective total joint arthroplasty patients. METHOD: A multidisciplinary team comprising orthopaedic surgeons, nephrologists, anesthesiologists, cardiologists, and internal medicine hospitalists created a comprehensive protocol aimed at decreasing complications after elective joint arthroplasty and improving clinical outcomes across multiple hospitals. Patient demographics, hospital length of stay, readmission rates, mortality, and postoperative AKI and hypotension incidences were recorded and compared between preprotocol phase I (initial protocol implementation) and phase II (protocol expansion across 10 hospitals) patient cohorts. RESULTS: Overall, 3,222 patients over 56 months and 10 hospitals were included. Our phase II AKI rate (0.6%) was significantly lower than our preprotocol rate (6.2%, P < 0.01) and statistically similar to our phase I rate (1.2%, P = 0.61). Our hypotension rate in phase II (6.8%) was significantly lower than our preprotocol rate (12.7%, P < 0.01) but statistically similar to our phase I rate (5.9%, P = 0.40). Furthermore, a significant decrease was observed in hospital length of stay (P < 0.01) over time, but no difference was observed in readmission (P = 0.59) and mortality rates (P = 1.00) over time. DISCUSSION: This protocol-driven interventional study provides a detailed and successful multidisciplinary method to manage and decrease rates of AKI and hypotension in a large patient cohort across multiple hospital centers.

Reducing Hypotension and Acute Kidney Injury in the Elective Total Joint Arthroplasty Population: A Multi-Disciplinary Approach.

BACKGROUND: When critically analyzing our hospital system's rate of hypotension and acute kidney injury (AKI) after total joint arthroplasty, our incidence rates (14.54%, 6.02%) were much higher than our peers (7.17%, 2.03%) and national rates (2.0%, 3.3%). We present a multi-disciplinary management intervention that aimed to decrease overall complication rates. METHOD: A multi-disciplinary team implemented a protocol at our suburban hospital to limit complication rates after joint replacement surgery. Hypotension, AKI, length of stay (LOS), re-admission rates, and mortality rates were compared before the protocol was implemented, after protocol implementation, and after protocol integration into our EMR (electronic medical record). RESULTS: In total, 1233 patients over 36 months were followed. Hypotension rates after protocol implementation into EMR (group 3) were significantly lower than rates before the protocol (group 1) (P = .002), with rates after protocol implementation without EMR (group 2) trending toward a significant decrease from group 1 (P = .064). AKI rates in group 3 were significantly lower than group 1 (P = .000) and group 2 (P = .006). No difference was seen in hypotension rates between group 2 and 3 (P = .792) or AKI rates between group 1 and 2 (P = .533). Finally, no significant difference was seen between groups in LOS (P = .560), re-admission rates (P = .378), and mortality rates (all 0.0%). CONCLUSION: By implementing a comprehensive electronic protocol consisting of pre-operative risk stratification, multi-disciplinary medical optimization, and an evolving post-operative management plan, significant decreases in hypotension and AKI can be seen.

Innovations in treating aortic diseases: the abdominal aorta.

Patients with an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) could benefit from earlier diagnosis to improve long-term outcomes. Candidate serum biomarkers for earlier AAA diagnosis include D-dimer, fibrinogen, low-density lipoprotein, high-density lipoprotein, lipoprotein(a), and the proteolytic enzymes known as matrix metalloproteinases. Furthermore, biomarkers such as brain natriuretic peptide significantly stratify perioperative risk in AAA repair. Statins significantly improve outcomes after AAA repair. They may also significantly slow AAA growth to allow pharmacologic arrest of AAA development. Recent trials have focused attention on fluid management for AAA repair. Although restrictive fluid management may significantly improve clinical outcomes, current evidence does not clearly support crystalloid or colloid for AAA repair. There may be an increased risk of renal dysfunction associated with hetastarch therapy. Endovascular repair has revolutionized the clinical management of AAAs. Recent trials have shown its significant outcome advantages. Furthermore, it is also applicable in high-risk operative cohorts and, in the future, may be suited for earlier AAA repair. This technology continues to advance with the development of branched and fenestrated grafts as well as total percutaneous endovascular AAA repair. Regardless of these advances, the clinical management of endoleaks will remain a major clinical focus. Taken together, these advances in the management of AAAs likely will significantly influence future clinical approaches to this challenging patient cohort.

Progress in perioperative echocardiography: focus on safety, clinical outcomes, 3-dimensional imaging, and education.

Gastric decompression with an orogastric tube after anesthetic induction does not appear to enhance image quality for routine cases. The insertion of a transesophageal echocardiographic (TEE) probe can cause significant upper-airway trauma, which can be minimized with rigid laryngoscopy. Limited TEE imaging without transgastric views appears to be safe and clinically adequate in patients with advanced liver disease and esophageal varices. Although esophagogastric perforation because of transesophageal echocardiography is rare, the risk is significantly higher with advanced age and female sex. The echocardiographic assessment of right ventricular function and left ventricular diastolic function can improve the prediction of atrial arrhythmias after elective lung resection. Furthermore, asymptomatic left ventricular systolic or diastolic dysfunction is an independent predictor of cardiovascular mortality and morbidity after open vascular surgery. Advances in 3D echocardiography have shown that hypertrophic cardiomyopathy frequently is associated with changes in the mitral valve complex that predispose to left ventricular outflow tract obstruction. Furthermore, 3D imaging of the mitral apparatus has highlighted the importance of the annular saddle shape and the anatomic variability in ischemic mitral regurgitation. Education in perioperative echocardiography is experiencing high demand that can be satisfied partially with simulators and Internet-based educational activities. These modalities will aid in the dissemination of echocardiography through perioperative practice.

Revised Cardiac Risk Index (Lee) and perioperative cardiac events as predictors of long-term mortality in patients undergoing endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm repair.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if the Revised Cardiac Risk Index (Lee) is useful for stratification of patients by risk of both perioperative cardiac morbidity and long-term all-cause mortality in the setting of endovascular repair of abdominal aortic aneurysms. DESIGN: This study was designed as a retrospective review. SETTING: It was conducted at a single academic medical institution. PARTICIPANTS: The analysis included 225 patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms admitted to the authors' institution from 1999 to 2006. INTERVENTIONS: All patients underwent endovascular aortic aneurysm repair. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Data were collected from medical records, office charts, and physician quality-assurance databases. There were no in-hospital cardiac deaths. The major adverse cardiac event rate in the perioperative period was 6.2%. Long-term all-cause mortality was 23%. Univariate analysis showed that a history of coronary artery disease (CAD) (likelihood ratio [LR] = 8.7, p = 0.023), history of congestive heart failure (LR = 4, p = 0.042), and a Revised Cardiac Risk Index (RCRI) > or =3 (LR = 8.6, p = 0.004) were significant predictors for perioperative major adverse cardiac events. A history of CAD (LR = 10.7, p = 0.002), echocardiographic evidence of myocardial infarction (LR = 8.5, p = 0.006), exercise tolerance of only 1 block (LR = 8.4, p = 0.005), RCRI > or =3 (LR = 5.6, p = 0.022), and perioperative cardiac events (LR = 15.9, p < 0.0001) were significantly associated with long-term all-cause mortality. Perioperative cardiac events remained highly significant in predicting long-term mortality within the RCRI > or =3 subgroup (LR = 6.1, p = 0.019). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study confirm that long-term mortality remains high after endovascular repair of abdominal aortic aneurysms. The Lee index may be a useful tool for stratification of high-risk patients from both a short- and long-term perspective in the setting of endoluminal graft repair.