Articles: general-anesthesia.
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Shared decision making is rarely used in anaesthesia consultations. Because either spinal or general anaesthesia can be appropriate for many patients undergoing surgery to repair a hip fracture, this is an appropriate context to implement and test shared decision making and associated resources for anaesthesia decisions. Conversation aids can facilitate shared decision making between clinicians, patients, and caregivers about treatment choices. ⋯ Reasonable shared decision-making strategies such as conversation aids were seen by most participants as helpful to support shared decision making about anaesthesia options for hip fracture surgery. Engaging end users at the local level can address key implementation barriers.
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The traditional management of pregnant patients with Chiari I malformation (CM-I) heavily favors cesarean section and general anesthesia to limit the perceived risk of maternal neurological complications attributed to vaginal delivery and neuraxial anesthesia. The aim of this study was to compare reported neurological symptoms and radiographic presentations before and after childbirth performed by patients with CM-I, with and without associated syrinx. ⋯ Our findings suggest that patients with CM-I may deliver vaginally and receive neuraxial anesthesia with low risk of neurological complications or radiographic worsening. As these patients were not prospectively selected, limitations exist, and it remains important to consider the severity of the patient's clinical and radiographic presentation when selecting anesthetic and delivery modality.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Feb 2025
ReviewRisk factors for persistent postoperative opioid use: an entity distinct from chronic postsurgical pain.
Despite a decline in opioid prescriptions over the past decade, patients commonly receive opioid analgesics as a treatment for postoperative pain in the USA. One complication that patients may experience after surgery is persistent postoperative opioid use (PPOU), or opioid use beyond the typical recovery period. Often defined as beyond 3 months postsurgery, PPOU is frequently conflated with chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP), where pain persists well after the expected healing time following surgery. ⋯ Despite the overlap of some factors, studies typically employ different frameworks when examining PPOU and CPSP, with a biopsychosocial model applied for CPSP and little emphasis on an individual's social environment employed for PPOU. Additionally, existing studies predominantly rely on retrospective insurance claims data, which may not capture the full scope of risk factors. To fill gaps in understanding, investigations may prospectively assess and analyze patient-reported outcomes, implement similar frameworks, and concurrently measure both conditions to advance the scientific understanding of PPOU and CPSP.