Perfusion
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Insufflation of carbon dioxide (CO(2)) to the operative field has been used to prevent major organ injury attributed to air embolisms in cardiac surgery. However, it may be preferable to avoid hypercapnia induced by CO(2) insufflation, owing to its potentially harmful effect. To investigate the effectiveness of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) as a possible method for continuous monitoring of arterial CO(2) tension during cardiac surgery, we evaluated the correlation between the change in arterial CO(2) tension and the change in regional cerebral oxygen saturation (rScO(2)) obtained from NIRS in as controlled a condition as possible. ⋯ Since the change in regional cerebral oxygen saturation was correlated with the change in arterial CO(2) tension during mild hypothermic CPB, NIRS might be a possible non-invasive method for monitoring of arterial CO(2) tension without incurring additional cost in this setting.