Canadian journal of anaesthesia = Journal canadien d'anesthésie
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An increasing number of thoracic decortications have been performed in Manitoba, from five in 2007 to 45 in 2014. The primary objective of this study was to define the epidemiology of decortications in Manitoba. The secondary objective was to compare patients who underwent decortication due to primary infectious vs non-infectious etiology with respect to their perioperative outcomes. ⋯ There has been a ninefold increase in decortications over an eight-year period. Potential causes include an increase in the incidence of pneumonia, increased organism virulence, host changes, and changes in practice patterns. Patients undergoing decortication for infectious causes had an increased risk for adverse perioperative outcomes. Anesthesiologists need to be aware of the high perioperative morbidity of these patients and the potential need for postoperative admission to an intensive care unit.
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This study explored how anesthesiologists understand situational awareness (SA) and how they think SA is learned, taught, and assessed. ⋯ Although SA is an essential concept in anesthesiology, its use remains rather tacit, primarily due to the lack of a common operational definition of the term. Faculty development is required to help anesthesiologists teach and assess SA more explicitly in the clinical environment.
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Observational Study
Early rise in postoperative creatinine for identification of acute kidney injury after cardiac surgery.
Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a potentially serious complication of cardiac surgery. Treatment strategies are unlikely to prove efficacious unless patients are identified and treated soon after the onset of injury. In this observational study, we determined and validated the ability of an early rise in postoperative serum creatinine to identify patients who suffer AKI during cardiac surgery. ⋯ In patients undergoing cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass, an early rise in postoperative creatinine is a useful marker for the early identification of AKI patients. This could allow inclusion of such patients in clinical trials of promising therapeutic strategies that need to be initiated soon after the onset of injury.