Best practice & research. Clinical anaesthesiology
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Best Pract Res Clin Anaesthesiol · Mar 2008
ReviewCardiovascular protection by anti-inflammatory statin therapy.
Statins are widely used in the prevention of atheromatous disease and its complications. While their lipid lowering effects are very important, there is increasing emphasis on the other effects of statins described as pleiotropic. These include atheromatous plaque stabilisation generally ascribed to their anti-inflammatory properties. ⋯ The majority of the studies have shown benefits of statin therapy. The reason for these reported benefits is the anti-inflammatory properties of statins in the face of the known release of such mediators during major surgery, leading to plaque disruption and major adverse cardiac events. To date there are too few randomised controlled studies to recommend the prophylactic administration of statins preoperatively, yet the cohort studies are suggestive of benefits.
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Best Pract Res Clin Anaesthesiol · Mar 2008
ReviewBeta blockers and alpha2 agonists for cardioprotection.
Perioperative beta blockade or the use of alpha2 agonists remains a contentious and controversial area of perioperative medicine. Although there is no question that the liberal use of beta blockers (or alpha2 agonists) to prevent or reduce overt signs of sympathetic overactivity, particularly at known periods of stress (e.g. induction, incision, emergence, etc) is an important and routine part of the management of high risk patients, there remains considerable controversy in the literature regarding the efficacy of either short or long-term regimens on cardiac morbidity or long-term outcomes, particularly in those patients not previously receiving medication for known coronary artery disease or hypertension. The role of strict heart rate control (and its safety with regards to hypotension and possibly congestive heart failure) versus intermittent fixed dosing of beta blockers is particularly contentious. We consider the latest literature on this topic and identify areas of agreement and contention and present the latest recommendations of the American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology Perioperative Guidelines Group.
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Best Pract Res Clin Anaesthesiol · Mar 2008
ReviewPharmacogenomics and end-organ susceptibility to injury in the perioperative period.
Genomic medicine has provided new mechanistic understanding for many complex diseases over the last 5-10 years. More recently genomic approaches have been applied to the perioperative paradigm, facilitating identification of patients at high risk for adverse events, as well as those who will respond better/worse to specific pharmacologic therapies. ⋯ Precise predictors of each adverse event are being elucidated so that corrective therapeutics can be instituted to improve outcomes in high-risk patients. While the field of perioperative genomics could be considered in its infancy, such approaches are the wave of the future.
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Preserving donor organs in optimal condition is a prerequisite for successful transplantation. The donor organ is subjected to a multitude of stresses. ⋯ As progressively more is known about the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms, focused and efficient therapeutic interventions can be developed. We will review current organ protection techniques and look at possible future strategies to further improve the final donor organ quality.
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Best Pract Res Clin Anaesthesiol · Mar 2008
ReviewAntiplatelet therapy and coronary stents in perioperative medicine--the two sides of the coin.
New trends in interventional cardiology, e.g. the increasing practice of coronary intervention with stent implantation and the prolonged use of dual antiplatelet therapy--usually a combination of clopidogrel and aspirin--has also increased the number of patients presenting for non-cardiac surgery. The two most commonly used stent types, bare-metal stents (BMSs) and drug-eluting stents (DESs), mandate different lengths of dual antiplatelet drug therapy to avoid stent thrombosis. ⋯ As long as prospective trials are not available, the recommendations and guidelines of task forces and experts are based on retrospective studies and case reports. The perioperative management, decision trees and the importance of close interdisciplinary collaboration between cardiologists, surgeons and anaesthetists will be described.