ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to examine whether a routine preoperative ECG is necessary in children to assess the risks in anaesthesia and surgery. METHODS: We examined the records of 3030 children anaesthetized in our hospital in 1990 and compared records of complications with preoperative ECGs. We also evaluated questionnaires on this subject which we had sent to 51 large pediatric hospitals in Germany in 1991. RESULTS: During 3030 anaesthetic procedures there were 93 complications, 67 of which were not of cardiac origin. Of the 26 cardiac complications only 4 needed therapy (AV-Block 2 degrees, fall in blood pressure). Preoperative ECGs were recorded in 180 cases: 152 were normal, 8 showed harmless deviations from normal and 16 were recorded because of known cardiac defects. None of the 180 children developed complications during anaesthesia. Our questionnaire was returned completed carefully by 36 of the 51 hospitals. In most hospitals a preoperative ECG is only recorded when heart disease is known or suspected. CONCLUSION: Routine preoperative ECGs are unnecessary in children unless there are clinical symptoms of heart diseases or heart disease is suspected.
