Is Penicillin Allergy a Risk Factor for Surgical Site Infection After Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery?

PURPOSE: The selection of perioperative antibiotics for prevention of surgical site infection (SSI) is often limited by the presence of a reported penicillin allergy. The purpose of this study was to determine if oral and maxillofacial surgery patients who report allergy to penicillin are at an increased risk of developing SSI. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was performed of patients who underwent oral and maxillofacial surgical procedures in the operating room setting at a single institution between 2011 and 2018. The following categories of procedures were investigated: dentoalveolar, orthognathic, orthognathic with third molar extraction, pathology and reconstruction, and temporomandibular joint. The primary predictor and outcome variables were reported penicillin allergy and surgical site infection, respectively. Bivariate and multiple logistic regression analysis were performed. P < .05 was considered to be significant. RESULTS: The cohort was composed of 2,058 patients of which 318 (15.5%) reported allergy to penicillin. Beta-lactam antibiotics were administered less frequently to penicillin allergic patients perioperatively compared with those without penicillin allergy (7.9 vs 97.1%, P < .001), while clindamycin was more commonly administered (76.4 vs 2.5%, P < .001). Clindamycin was associated with a higher SSI rate compared with beta-lactam antibiotics (5.6 vs 1.4%, P < .001). Penicillin allergy was significantly associated with SSI at an adjusted odds ratio of 2.61 (95% CI 1.51 to 4.49, P = .001). After holding perioperative antibiotic usage equal between the 2 groups, penicillin allergy per se was no longer associated with SSI (P = .901), suggesting that the outcome was mediated by antibiotic selection. CONCLUSIONS: Penicillin allergy was associated with development of SSI due to receipt of non-beta-lactam antibiotics as perioperative prophylaxis. Formal allergy evaluation should be considered for patients with putative penicillin allergy.

Tissue oximetry during cardiac surgery and in the cardiac intensive care unit: A prospective observational trial.

BACKGROUND: Cerebral oximetry using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) has well-documented benefits during cardiac surgery. The authors tested the hypothesis that NIRS technology can be used at other sites as a tissue oximeter during cardiac surgery and in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). AIMS: To establish feasibility of monitoring tissue oximetry during and after cardiac surgery, to examine the correlations between tissue oximetry values and cerebral oximetry values, and to examine correlations between oximetry values and mean arterial pressure (MAP) in order to test whether cerebral oximetry can be used as an index organ. SETTINGS AND DESIGNS: A large, single-center tertiary care university hospital prospective observational trial of 31 patients undergoing cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass was conducted. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Oximetry stickers were applied to both sides of the forehead, the nonarterial line forearm, and the skin above one paraspinal muscle. Data were collected from before anesthesia induction until extubation or for at least 24 h in patients who remained intubated. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Categorical variables were evaluated with Chi-square or Fisher's exact tests, while Wilcoxon rank-sum tests or student's t-tests were used for continuous variables. RESULTS: The correlation between cerebral oximetry values and back oximetry values ranged from r = 0.37 to 0.40. The correlation between cerebral oximetry values and forearm oximetry values ranged from r = 0.11 to 0.13. None of the sites correlated with MAP. CONCLUSIONS: Tissue oximetry at the paraspinal muscle correlates with cerebral oximetry values while at the arm does not. Further research is needed to evaluate the role of tissue oximetry on outcomes such as acute renal failure, prolonged need for mechanical ventilation, stroke, vascular ischemic complications, prolonged ICU and hospital length of stay, and mortality in cardiac surgery.

Robotic-assisted thoracoscopic lung surgery: anesthetic impact and perioperative experience.

Anesthesiologists and the perioperative team have a tremendous impact upon clinical outcomes in robotic-assisted thoracoscopic surgery. As anesthesiology is developing its role outside the operating room, the patient population benefits from an expanded focus on perioperative critical care and pain management. This article focuses upon the preoperative optimization, unique intraoperative considerations for surgeons and anesthesiologists, and postoperative management of patients undergoing robotic-assisted thoracoscopic surgery.

Surgery Start Time Does Not Impact Outcome in Elective Cardiac Surgery.

OBJECTIVE: Determine if surgery start time impacts patient outcomes in elective cardiac surgery. DESIGN: This was a retrospective study. SETTING: This study was based at a single academic institution. PARTICIPANTS: Patients undergoing elective cardiac surgery over a 3-year period were included. INTERVENTIONS: There were no interventions. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The authors performed a retrospective study of patients undergoing elective cardiac surgery over a 3-year period. They divided their patient groups into those who had an anesthesia start time between 6:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. and those who had an anesthesia start time between 4:01 p.m. and 5:59 a.m. In the original sample and propensity-score-matched groups, the authors examined the effects of start time on morbidity, mortality, and several metrics of hospital length of stay. The start time of elective cardiac surgery did not have a statistically significant effect upon mortality, individual or composite morbidity, or hospital length of stay in either the original sample or the propensity-score-matched sample. CONCLUSIONS: The authors' results suggested that elective cardiac surgery may be performed late at night without adverse effects, although institutional support for this effort (such as 24-hour intensivist coverage to facilitate fast-track extubation) may have been integral to their findings.

Impact of the Zika Virus for Anesthesiologists: A Review of Current Literature and Practices.

Zika virus disease is of growing concern to all clinicians. There is a growing concern with regards to the neurologic sequela of the virus, particularly for infants born to women infected while pregnant. The continued spread of this virus throughout North and South America requires all anesthesiologists to maintain vigilance on this issue. This article addresses some of the key issues that pertain to anesthesiologists with regards to the Zika virus including the risks of perioperative management of patients with Zika virus. A discussion of the risks of transfusion and current blood management practices also is included in this review.

Death During Simulation: A Literature Review.

INTRODUCTION: One of the goals of simulation is to teach subjects critical skills and knowledge applicable to live encounters, without the risk of harming actual patients. Although simulation education has surged in medical training over the last two decades, several ethically challenging educational methods have arisen. Simulated death has arisen as one of these challenging issues and currently there is no consensus regarding how to best manage this controversial topic in the simulated environment. The goal of this review is to analyze how simulated mortality has been used and discover whether or not this tool is beneficial to learners. METHODS: In May 2016, the authors performed a literature search on both Pubmed and the Cochrane database using multiple variations of keywords; they then searched bibliographies and related articles. RESULTS: There were 901 articles acquired in the initial search. The authors eliminated articles that were not relevant to the subject matter. After adding articles from bibliographies and related articles, the authors included the 43 articles cited in this article. DISCUSSION: As a result, the authors of this article believe that death, when used appropriately in simulation, can be an effective teaching tool and can be used in a responsible manner.

Laparoscopic appendectomy in a pediatric patient with type 1 Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease.

A pediatric patient with type 1 Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease-a disorder associated with a demyelinating polyneuropathy-presented for laparoscopic appendectomy in the setting of acute appendicitis. Induction and maintenance of anesthesia were successfully managed without the use of any depolarizing or nondepolarizing neuromuscular blocking agents. The patient was successfully extubated at the completion of the procedure without any respiratory or neuromuscular sequelae, with excellent pain control and no postoperative nausea or vomiting.

Cerebral oximetry monitoring during sinus endoscopy.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: Deliberate hypotension, reverse Trendelenburg position, and hyperventilation are techniques utilized during functional endoscopic sinus surgery to attempt to reduce surgical bleeding. These methods may predispose patients to cerebral ischemia. Cerebral oximetry has not been investigated extensively within otolaryngologic surgery. Our study sought to address the question of whether cerebral oximetry is feasible in the FESS population and evaluate whether the data provided may be useful in the assessment of cerebral perfusion. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective, blinded, observational trial. METHODS: We designed a prospective, blinded, observational trial of patients undergoing functional endoscopic sinus surgery using cerebral oximetry monitoring. Collected data included mean arterial blood pressure (MAP), end-tidal carbon dioxide (EtCO2), cerebral saturation (SctO2), postanesthesia care unit (PACU) length of stay, and incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV). RESULTS: Thirty-one subjects were enrolled into the study. Univariate analyses showed cross-correlation between concurrent EtCO2 values and SctO2 of 0.43 (95% CI: 0.27 to 0.59) and between present EtCO2 and the SctO2 5 minutes later of 0.46 (95% CI: 0.33 to 0.59). MAP was not significantly cross-correlated with SctO2. Patients who had an SctO2 below 60% at any time had a median (interquartile range [IQR]) PACU length of stay of 167 (IQR, 95-386) minutes. Patients whose cerebral saturation did not fall below 60% at any time had a median PACU length of stay of 103 (IQR, 76-155) minutes. This difference did not reach statistical significance (P = .257). The median (IQR) maximum decline in SctO2 for patients with PONV was 11.2% (IQR, 8.2%-13.1%) and for patients without PONV was 7.1% (IQR, 5.1%-9.8%) (P = .126). CONCLUSIONS: Cerebral oximetry monitoring was feasible during functional endoscopic sinus surgery. This study demonstrated a cross-correlation between EtCO2 and SctO2, but not MAP and SctO2. A longer PACU length of stay and higher rate of PONV were seen but did not reach statistical significance.