Wrong-Patient Blood Transfusion Error: Leveraging Technology to Overcome Human Error in Intraoperative Blood Component Administration.

BACKGROUND: Confirmation of match between patient and blood product remains a manual process in most operating rooms (ORs), and documentation of dual-signature verification remains paper based in most medical institutions. A sentinel event at Johns Hopkins Hospital in which a seriously ill patient undergoing an emergent surgical procedure was transfused with a unit of incompatible red blood cells that had been intended for another patient in an adjacent OR led the hospital to conduct a quality improvement project to improve the safety of intraoperative blood component transfusions. METHODS: A multidisciplinary quality improvement project team led a four-phase implementation of bedside bar code transfusion verification (BBTV) for intraoperative blood product administration. Manual random sample audits of blood component transfusions were used to examine accuracy of documentation from July 2014 through June 2016. After the transition to the Epic anesthesia information management system (AIMS) in July 2016, automated Epic reports were generated to provide population-level audits. RESULTS: After initiation of BBTV and the addition of Epic AIMS, compliance with obtaining three metrics on documentation of patient identification (two electronic signatures, start and stop times of transfusion, and blood volume transfused) was improved during a one-year period to > 96%. Pre-Epic audits had shown a mean compliance of only 86%, mainly reflecting a lack of paper blood component requisitions. CONCLUSION: By implementing BBTV and using a novel intraoperative documentation process within the Epic AIMS, a safer process of blood transfusion in the ORs was initiated and documentation improved.

Prediction of obstructive sleep apnea using visual photographic analysis.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) has been historically underdiagnosed and may be associated with grave perioperative complications. The ASA and American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommend OSA screening prior to surgery; however, only a minority of patients are screened. The objective of this study was to determine the proficiency of anesthesiologists, otolaryngologists, and internists at predicting the presence of OSA by visual photographic analysis without the use of a computer program to assist, and determine if prediction accuracy varies by provider type. DESIGN: Prospective case series SETTING: Tertiary care hospital-based academic center PATIENTS: Fifty-six consecutive patients presenting to the sleep laboratory undergoing polysomnography had frontal and lateral photographs of the face and torso taken. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MEASUREMENTS: Polysomnography outcomes and physician ratings. An obstructive apnea hypopnea index (oAHI) ≥15 was considered "positive." Twenty anesthesiologists, 10 otolaryngologists, and 11 internists viewed patient photographs and scored them as OSA "positive" or "negative" before and after being informed of patient comorbidities. MAIN RESULTS: Nineteen patients had an oAHI <15, 18 were ≥15 but <30, and 19 were ≥30. The mean oAHI was 28.7 ± 26.7 events/h (range, 0-125.7), and the mean body mass index was 34.1 ± 9.7 kg/m(2) (range, 17.4-63.7). Overall, providers predicted the correct answer with 61.8% accuracy without knowledge of comorbidities and 62.6% with knowledge (P < .0001). There was no difference between provider groups (P = .307). Prediction accuracy was unrelated to patient age (P = .067), gender (P = .306), or race (P = .087), but was related to body mass index (P = .0002). CONCLUSION: The ability to predict OSA based on visual inspection of frontal and lateral photographs is marginally superior to chance and did not differ by provider type. Knowledge of comorbidities did not improve prediction accuracy.

Obstructive sleep apnea, sleep disorders, and perioperative considerations.

Data suggest that surgical patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may be difficult to ventilate and intubate, and may be prone to postoperative complications. This article addresses the identification of patients at risk for OSA, epidemiology of the disorder, and treatment options, as well as the perioperative management of this population.

Perioperative Assessment and Management for Sleep Apnea in the Ambulatory Surgical Patient.

The overwhelming majority of surgical procedures performed in the United States are done on an outpatient basis. Patients with complicated medical problems are routinely scheduled for ambulatory procedures that have become progressively more complex. Appropriate patient selection is paramount to ensuring optimal perioperative outcomes, and the patient with known or suspected OSA presents unique challenges to the anesthesia care team regarding airway management, pain control, and postoperative monitoring requirements. Currently, a relative paucity of high-quality evidence exists on which to base guidelines or recommendations for the anesthetic care of these patients. It is generally agreed that early identification of those at risk for OSA allows for planning and implementation of strategies to help to reduce the risk of adverse perioperative events. Although various national societies have published consensus statements aimed at guiding the perioperative management of the patient at risk for OSA, more studies are needed to define the optimal approach to the perioperative care of this population.

Screening for Pediatric Obstructive Sleep Apnea before Ambulatory Surgery.

PURPOSE: The American Society of Anesthesia practice guidelines recommend that pediatric and adult patients who undergo ambulatory surgery be screened for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). With this in mind, our objective was to assess the frequency of screening by anesthesia providers for the signs and symptoms of OSA in children undergoing surgery in an ambulatory setting. METHODS: Prospective single-blinded observational study of anesthesia providers' preoperative interview of caregivers of consecutive patients younger than age 18 who were scheduled for ambulatory surgery. RESULTS: One hundred one children (30 females) were identified, with a mean age of 6.9 ± 5.0 years; 54 were classified as white, 33 as black, and 14 as other. Total OSA-18 scores ranged from 18 to 97, with a mean of 33.1 ± 14.8. The mean score for adenotonsillectomy patients was higher than that for children who underwent procedures other than adenotonsillectomy. Thirty-one percent of children were screened for OSA, and snoring was the most common symptom recorded (28%). Patients who were screened for OSA were more likely to have snoring (p < 0.001), known OSA (p = 0.006), and a scheduled adenotonsillectomy (p = 0.02). CONCLUSION: OSA was not routinely screened for by anesthesia providers prior to ambulatory pediatric surgery. When screening did occur, "snoring" was the most commonly recorded symptom. Paradoxically, patients with undiagnosed OSA who would benefit the most from screening were the least likely to be screened. COMMENTARY: A commentary on this article appears in this issue on page 697.

Pediatric obstructive sleep apnea.

Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is a disorder of airway obstruction with multisystem implications and associated complications. OSAS affects children from infancy to adulthood and is responsible for behavioral, cognitive, and growth impairment as well as cardiovascular and perioperative respiratory morbidity and mortality. OSAS is associated commonly with comorbid conditions, including obesity and asthma. Adenotonsillectomy is the most commonly used treatment option for OSAS in childhood, but efforts are underway to identify medical treatment options.

Risk assessment of obstructive sleep apnea in a population of patients undergoing ambulatory surgery.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: The aims of this study were to: (a) assess the prevalence of diagnosed OSA and symptoms of undiagnosed OSA in a cohort of ambulatory surgical patients, and (b) characterize the frequency of postoperative complications in outpatients with a diagnosis of or a propensity to OSA. METHODS: Patients presenting for ambulatory surgery completed a self-administered questionnaire. Using a previously validated prediction model, the probability for OSA was determined. Patients with > or = 70% propensities were considered to be at high risk of having the disorder. Relevant perioperative data and complications were tracked and recorded, and differences in median estimated propensities for OSA were considered by these data. RESULTS: Three-thousand five hundred fifty-three patients 'completed the preoperative survey. A total of 2139 patients had perioperative data and estimated propensity scores. Ninety-four of the 2139 (4.4%) patients gave a self-reported prior diagnosis of OSA. One hundred three (4.8%) patients were found to be at high risk of OSA based on the survey and prediction model. Seventy-five percent of the patients with > 70% propensity for OSA had not yet been diagnosed. There was no association between OSA propensity scores and unplanned hospital admission, however there was an association of increased propensity with difficult intubation, intraoperative use of pressors, and postoperative oxygen saturation in the PACU. CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that undiagnosed OSA may be relatively common in an ambulatory surgical population. There was no relationship between unplanned hospital admission and diagnosis of or increased risk of OSA. However, there was an association of increased perioperative events requiring additional anesthetic management in patients with a diagnosis of, or with a higher propensity to OSA.