Anaesthesia
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Observational Study
Prospective comparison of three methods for detecting peri-operative neurocognitive disorders in older adults undergoing cardiac and non-cardiac surgery.
Postoperative neurocognitive disorders occur frequently in older adult patients. Neuropsychological assessment is the gold standard for diagnosis, but the resources required for routine use are significant. Instead, it is common for simplified and unvalidated tests to be used for trials and in clinical practice. ⋯ Overall, there was limited agreement between tests. We conclude that the Modified Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status and Montreal Cognitive Assessment should not be used in isolation to diagnose postoperative neurocognitive disorders. There seems to be little to no pre-operative, postoperative or pre- to postoperative correlation between these tests and the neuropsychological assessment in older adults without pre-operative cognitive impairment.
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Pre-operative risk stratification is a key part of the care pathway for emergency bowel surgery, as it facilitates the identification of high-risk patients. Several novel risk scores have recently been published that are designed to identify patients who are frail or significantly unwell. They can also be calculated pre-operatively from routinely collected clinical data. ⋯ The model demonstrated good discrimination and calibration (c-statistic 0.827) but was marginally outperformed by the National Emergency Laparotomy Audit score (c-statistic 0.861). All other models compared performed less well (c-statistics 0.734-0.808). Pre-operative patient vital signs, blood tests and markers of frailty can be used to accurately predict the risk of 30-day mortality after emergency bowel surgery.
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Viral infections form a substantial part of the intensive care workload, even before the recent and ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The growing availability of molecular diagnostics for viral infections has led to increased recognition of these pathogens. This additional information, however, provides new challenges for interpretation and management. ⋯ We will also discuss herpesviridae complications, commonly seen due to reactivation of latent infections. Further, we explore some rarer and emerging viruses, including recognition of viral haemorrhagic fevers, and briefly discuss post-viral syndromes which may present to the intensive care unit. Finally, we will discuss infection control and its importance in preventing nosocomial viral transmission.
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Aerosol-generating procedures are medical interventions considered high risk for transmission of airborne pathogens. Tracheal intubation of anaesthetised patients is not high risk for aerosol generation; however, patients often perform respiratory manoeuvres during awake tracheal intubation which may generate aerosol. To assess the risk, we undertook aerosol monitoring during a series of awake tracheal intubations and nasendoscopies in healthy participants. ⋯ Awake tracheal intubation and nasendoscopy can generate high concentrations of respiratory aerosol. Specific risks are associated with lidocaine spray of the larynx, instrumentation of the vocal cords, procedural coughing and deep breaths. Given the proximity of practitioners to patient-generated aerosol, airborne infection control precautions are appropriate when undertaking awake upper airway endoscopy (including awake tracheal intubation, nasendoscopy and bronchoscopy) if respirable pathogens cannot be confidently excluded.