Fast-Track Failure After Cardiac Surgery: Risk Factors and Outcome With Long-Term Follow-Up

Association between improved compliance with enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery guidelines and postoperative outcomes: A retrospective study

OBJECTIVE

Enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery is a multidisciplinary clinical care pathway that relies on a bundle of interventions, aiming to reduce the stress response to surgery and promote early recovery of organ function. In 2011, our institution introduced an institutional enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery program focusing on 9 central interventions, which have been expanded during the past decade by additional interventions now considered standard of care. After the recent publication of the enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery guidelines, we evaluated the relation between the compliance with these enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery guidelines and postoperative outcomes.

METHODS

All patients enrolled in our enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery program in 2019 were included in this retrospective single-center audit. The primary outcome was compliance with 23 enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery guidelines. Secondary outcomes included occurrence of at least 1 postoperative complication and hospital length of stay.

RESULTS

A total of 356 patients were included in this study. Compliance with the enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery guidelines was 64%. Postoperatively, 51% of the patients experienced at least 1 complication and had a median hospital length of stay of 6 days. Multivariable analysis showed that an increased compliance (per 10%) with the enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery guidelines was associated with a lower risk for any complication (odds ratio, 0.60; 95% confidence interval, 0.46-0.79; P = .0003) and a higher probability of earlier hospital discharge (hazard ratio, 1.25; 95% confidence interval, 1.10-1.43; P = .0008).

CONCLUSIONS

This audit revealed a correlation between increased compliance with enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery guidelines and a reduction of postoperative complications and hospital length of stay. Future trials are needed to establish evidence-based recommendations for each separate intervention of the enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery guidelines and to create a minimum core-set of enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery interventions.

Erector spinae plane block for postoperative analgesia in robotically-assisted coronary artery bypass surgery: Results of a randomized placebo-controlled trial

STUDY OBJECTIVE

To investigate if an erector spinae plane (ESP) block decreases postoperative opioid consumption, pain and postoperative nausea and vomiting in patients undergoing robotically-assisted minimally invasive direct coronary artery bypass surgery (RAMIDCAB).

DESIGN

A single-center, double-blind, prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled trial.

SETTING

Postoperative period; operating room, post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) and hospital ward in a university hospital.

PATIENTS

Sixty-four patients undergoing RAMIDCAB surgery via left-sided mini-thoracotomy and enrolled in the institutional enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery program.

INTERVENTIONS

At the end of surgery, patients received an ESP catheter at vertebra T5 under ultrasound guidance and were randomized to the administration of either ropivacaine 0.5% (loading dose of 30 ml and three additional doses of 20 ml each, interspersed with a 6 h interval) or normal saline 0.9% (with an identical administration scheme). In addition, patients received multimodal analgesia including acetaminophen, dexamethasone and patient-controlled analgesia with morphine. Following the final ESP bolus and before catheter removal, the position of the catheter was re-evaluated by ultrasound. Patients, investigators and medical personnel were blinded for the group allocation during the entire trial.

MEASUREMENTS

Primary outcome was cumulative morphine consumption during the first 24 h after extubation. Secondary outcomes included location and severity of pain, presence/extent of sensory block, duration of postoperative ventilation and hospital length of stay. Safety outcomes comprised the incidence of adverse events.

MAIN RESULTS

Median (IQR) 24-h morphine consumption was not different between the intervention- and control-groups, 67 mg (35-84) versus 71 mg (52-90) (p = 0.25), respectively. Likewise, no differences were detected in secondary and safety endpoints.

CONCLUSIONS

Following RAMIDCAB surgery, adding an ESP block to a standard multimodal analgesia regimen did not reduce opioid consumption and pain scores.

Efficacy of erector spinae plane block for minimally invasive mitral valve surgery: Results of a double-blind, prospective randomized placebo-controlled trial

STUDY OBJECTIVE

To investigate if an erector spinae plane (ESP) block decreases postoperative opioid consumption, pain and postoperative nausea and vomiting in patients undergoing minimally invasive mitral valve surgery (MIMVS).

DESIGN

A single-center, double-blind, prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled trial.

SETTING

Postoperative period; operating room, post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) and hospital ward in a university hospital.

PATIENTS

Seventy-two patients undergoing video-assisted thoracoscopic MIMVS via right-sided mini-thoracotomy and enrolled in the institutional enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery program.

INTERVENTIONS

At the end of surgery, all patients received an ESP catheter at vertebra T5 under ultrasound guidance and were randomized to the administration of either ropivacaine 0.5% (loading of dose 30 ml and three additional doses of 20 ml with a 6 h interval) or normal saline 0.9% (with an identical administration scheme). In addition, patients received multimodal postoperative analgesia including dexamethasone, acetaminophen and patient-controlled intravenous analgesia with morphine. Following the final ESP bolus and before catheter removal, the position of the catheter was re-evaluated by ultrasound. Patients, investigators and medical personnel were blinded for the group allocation during the entire trial.

MEASUREMENTS

Primary outcome was cumulative morphine consumption during the first 24 h after extubation. Secondary outcomes included severity of pain, presence/extent of sensory block, duration of postoperative ventilation and hospital length of stay. Safety outcomes comprised the incidence of adverse events.

MAIN RESULTS

Median (IQR) 24-h morphine consumption was not different between the intervention- and control-group, 41 mg (30-55) versus 37 mg (29-50) (p = 0.70), respectively. Likewise, no differences were detected for secondary and safety endpoints.

CONCLUSIONS

Following MIMVS, adding an ESP block to a standard multimodal analgesia regimen did not reduce opioid consumption and pain scores.