• Yuqiang Wang, Zeruxin Luo, Wei Huang, Xiu Zhang, Yingqiang Guo, and Pengming Yu.
• Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Sichuan University West China Hospital, Sichuan, China.
• J. Cardiothorac. Vasc. Anesth. 2023 Aug 1; 37 (8): 144214481442-1448.

ObjectivesTo review the efficacy of 2 score tools for identifying pulmonary complications after cardiac surgery.DesignA retrospective observational study.SettingAt the West China Hospital of Sichuan University General Hospital.ParticipantsPatients who underwent elective cardiac surgery (N = 508).InterventionsNot applicable.Measurements And Main ResultsA total of 508 patients who underwent elective cardiac surgery between March 2021 and December 2021 were included in this observational study. Three independent physiotherapists used 2 different sets of score tools, as described by Kroenke et al. (Kroenke Score) and Reeve et al. (Melbourne Group Scale), to evaluate clinically defined pulmonary complications according to the European Perioperative Clinical Outcome definitions (including atelectasis, pneumonia, and respiratory failure) daily after surgery at midday. The incidence of postoperative pulmonary complications (PPCs) was 51.6% (262/508) with the Kroenke Score and 21.9% (111/508) with the Melbourne Group Scale. The clinically observed incidence of atelectasis was 51.4%, pneumonia was 20.9%, and respiratory failure at 6.5%. The receiver operator characteristics curve showed that the overall validity of the Kroenke Score was better than that of the Melbourne Group Scale in atelectasis (area under the curve [AUC], 91.5% v 71.3%). The Melbourne Group Scale performed better in pneumonia (AUC, 99.4% v 80.0%) and respiratory failure (AUC, 88.5% v 75.9%) than the Kroenke Score.ConclusionThe incidence of PPCs after cardiac surgery was highly prevalent. Both the Kroenke Score and the Melbourne Group Scale are effective in identifying patients with PPCs. Kroenke Score can identify patients with mild pulmonary adverse events, whereas the Melbourne Group Scale is more dominant in identifying moderate-to-severe pulmonary complications.Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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