• Daniel S Leon-Ariza, Juan S Leon-Ariza, Jasvinder Nangiana, Vargas Grau Gabriel G School of Medicine, Universidad de Santander-UDES, Bucaramanga, Colombia; Division of Neurosurgery, Hospital Universitario de Bucaramanga Los Comune, Fidias E Leon-Sarmiento, and Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa.
• Mediciencias Research Group, Unicolciencias/Universidad Nacional, Bogotá, Colombia; School of Medicine, Universidad de Santander-UDES, Bucaramanga, Colombia. Electronic address: dleonariza@gmail.com.
• World Neurosurg. 2018 Sep 1; 117: 4-10.

BackgroundThe trigeminocardiac reflex (TCR) is characterized by bradycardia, decrease of mean arterial blood pressure, and sometimes, asystole during surgery. We critically reviewed TCR studies and devised a novel classification scheme for assessing the reflex.MethodsA comprehensive systematic literature review was performed using PubMed, MEDLINE, Web of Science, EMBASE, and Scielo databases. Eligible studies were extracted based on stringent inclusion and exclusion criteria. Statistical analyses were used to assess cardiovascular variables. TCR was classified according to morphophysiologic aspects involved with reflex elicitation.ResultsA total of 575 patients were included in this study. TCR was found in 8.9% of patients. The reflex was more often triggered by interventions made within the anterior cranial fossa. The maxillary branch (type II in the new classification) was the most prevalent nerve branch found to trigger the TCR. Heart rate and mean arterial blood pressure were similarly altered (P = 0.06; F = 0.3912809), covaried with age (P = 0.012; F = 9.302), and inversely correlated to each other (r = -0.27).ConclusionsTCR is a critical cardiovascular phenomenon that must be quickly identified and efficiently classified and should trigger vigilance. Prompt therapeutic measures during neurosurgical procedures should be carefully addressed to avoid unwanted complications. Accurate categorization using the new classification scheme will help to improve understanding and guide the management of TCR in the perioperative period.Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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