British journal of anaesthesia
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Anaemia is a common finding in patients presenting for major elective surgery and is associated with poor outcomes including death and complications. Iron deficiency is the leading cause of perioperative anaemia. Intravenous (i.v.) iron is considered to be an effective and safe treatment for iron deficiency anaemia and is recommended by expert opinion for treatment of preoperative anaemia, although evidence from clinical trials is lacking. ⋯ In the context of already widespread adoption of preoperative i.v. iron therapy, many clinicians may have felt they lacked equipoise. In light of the PREVENTT study routine use of i.v. iron in patients undergoing elective abdominal surgery cannot be recommended. Further research should define the optimum red cell transfusion strategy for patients undergoing surgery and idenify other surgical groups who may benefit from this intervention.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Automated closed-loop versus manually controlled norepinephrine infusion in patients undergoing intermediate- to high-risk abdominal surgery: a randomised controlled trial.
Hypotension occurs frequently during surgery and may be associated with adverse complications. Vasopressor titration is frequently used to correct hypotension, but requires considerable time and attention, potentially reducing the time available for other clinical duties. To overcome this issue, we have developed a closed-loop vasopressor (CLV) controller to help correct hypotension more efficiently. The aim of this randomised controlled study was to evaluate whether the CLV controller was superior to traditional vasopressor management at minimising hypotension in patients undergoing abdominal surgery. ⋯ NCT04089644.