Anaesthesia and intensive care
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Mar 2017
Patient and procedural factors associated with an increased risk of harm or death in the first 4,000 incidents reported to webAIRS.
This report describes an analysis of patient and procedural factors associated with a higher proportion of harm or death versus no harm in the first 4,000 incidents reported to webAIRS. The report is supplementary to a previous cross-sectional report on the first 4,000 incidents reported to webAIRS. The aim of this analysis was to identify potential patient or procedural factors that are more common in incidents resulting in harm or death than in incidents with more benign outcomes. ⋯ In addition, the proportion of incidents associated with death was higher for incidents in which the patient's age was >80 years, the American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status was 4 or 5, incidents involving non-elective procedures, and incidents occurring after hours (1800 to 0800 hours). When faced with incidents with these potential risk factors, anaesthetists should consider earlier interventions and request assistance at an earlier stage. Educational strategies on incident prevention and management should place even further emphasis on scenarios involving these factors.
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Mar 2017
A pilot study using preoperative cerebral tissue oxygen saturation to stratify cardiovascular risk in major non-cardiac surgery.
This prospective pilot study evaluated whether low preoperative cerebral tissue oxygen saturation is associated with unfavourable outcomes after major elective non-cardiac surgery. Eighty-one patients over 60 years of age, American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status 3 or 4, were recruited. Resting cerebral tissue oxygen saturation was recorded on room air, and after oxygen supplementation, using cerebral oximetry. ⋯ Room air cerebral tissue oxygen saturation was significantly associated with major adverse events (odds ratio 1.36 (95% CI 1.03-1.79), P=0.03). Saturation levels ≤68% carried a positive likelihood ratio of 2.2 for death or severe morbidity, P=0.04. A definitive trial is required to confirm if cerebral oximetry can be used to stratify the cardiovascular risk of patients presenting for non-cardiac surgery.
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Mar 2017
Hospitals with briefer than average lengths of stays for common surgical procedures do not have greater odds of either re-admission or use of short-term care facilities.
We considered whether senior hospital managers and department chairs need to be concerned that small reductions in average hospital length of stay (LOS) may be associated with greater rates of re-admission, use of home health care, and/or transfers to short-term care facilities. The 2013 United States Nationwide Readmissions Database was used to study surgical Diagnosis Related Groups (DRG) with 1) national median LOS ≥3 days and 2) ≥10 hospitals in the database that each had ≥100 discharges for the DRG. Dependent variables were considered individually: 1) re-admission within 30 days of discharge, 2) discharge disposition to home health care, and/or 3) discharge disposition of transfer to short-term care facility (i.e., inpatient rehabilitation hospital or skilled nursing facility). ⋯ Results were insensitive to the addition of patient-specific data. In the USA, patients at hospitals with briefer median LOS across multiple common surgical procedures did not have a greater risk for either hospital re-admission within 30 days of discharge or transfer to an inpatient rehabilitation hospital or a skilled nursing facility. The generalisable implication is that, across many surgical procedures, DRG-based financial incentives to shorten hospital stays seem not to influence post-acute care decisions.
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Mar 2017
ReviewApplying the cell-based coagulation model in the management of critical bleeding.
The cell-based coagulation model was proposed 15 years ago, yet has not been applied commonly in the management of critical bleeding. Nevertheless, this alternative model may better explain the physiological basis of current coagulation management during critical bleeding. ⋯ From a practical perspective, applying the cell-based coagulation model also explains why new direct oral anticoagulants are effective systemic anticoagulants even without affecting activated partial thromboplastin time or the International Normalized Ratio in a dose-related fashion. The cell-based coagulation model represents the most cohesive scientific framework on which we can understand and manage coagulation during critical bleeding.