Impact of the modality of mechanical ventilation on bleeding during pituitary surgery: A single blinded randomized trial

Skull Base Registries: A Roadmap

Hospitals, payors, and patients increasingly expect us to report our outcomes in more detail and to justify our treatment decisions and costs. Although there are many stakeholders in surgical outcomes, physicians must take the lead role in defining how outcomes are assessed. Skull base lesions interact with surrounding anatomy to produce a complex spectrum of presentations and surgical challenges, requiring a wide variety of surgical approaches. Moreover, many skull base lesions are relatively rare. These factors and others often preclude the use of prospective randomized clinical trials, thus necessitating alternate methods of scientific inquiry. In this paper, we propose a roadmap for implementing a skull base registry, along with expected benefits and challenges.

Ventilation Strategies During General Anesthesia for Noncardiac Surgery: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND

The optimal ventilation strategy during general anesthesia is unclear. This systematic review investigated the relationship between ventilation targets or strategies (eg, positive end-expiratory pressure [PEEP], tidal volume, and recruitment maneuvers) and postoperative outcomes.

METHODS

PubMed and Embase were searched on March 8, 2021, for randomized trials investigating the effect of different respiratory targets or strategies on adults undergoing noncardiac surgery. Two investigators reviewed trials for relevance, extracted data, and assessed risk of bias. Meta-analyses were performed for relevant outcomes, and several subgroup analyses were conducted. The certainty of evidence was evaluated using Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE).

RESULTS

This review included 63 trials with 65 comparisons. Risk of bias was intermediate for all trials. In the meta-analyses, lung-protective ventilation (ie, low tidal volume with PEEP) reduced the risk of combined pulmonary complications (odds ratio [OR], 0.37; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.28-0.49; 9 trials; 1106 patients), atelectasis (OR, 0.39; 95% CI, 0.25-0.60; 8 trials; 895 patients), and need for postoperative mechanical ventilation (OR, 0.36; 95% CI, 0.13-1.00; 5 trials; 636 patients). Recruitment maneuvers reduced the risk of atelectasis (OR, 0.44; 95% CI, 0.21-0.92; 5 trials; 328 patients). We found no clear effect of tidal volume, higher versus lower PEEP, or recruitment maneuvers on postoperative pulmonary complications when evaluated individually. For all comparisons across targets, no effect was found on mortality or hospital length of stay. No effect measure modifiers were found in subgroup analyses. The certainty of evidence was rated as very low, low, or moderate depending on the intervention and outcome.

CONCLUSIONS

Although lung-protective ventilation results in a decrease in pulmonary complications, randomized clinical trials provide only limited evidence to guide specific ventilation strategies during general anesthesia for adults undergoing noncardiac surgery.

Intraoperative Respiratory and Hemodynamic Strategies for Reducing Nausea, Vomiting, and Pain after Surgery: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND

Despite improved medical treatment strategies, post-operative pain, nausea, and vomiting remain major challenges. This systematic review investigated the relationship between perioperative respiratory and hemodynamic interventions and postoperative pain, nausea, and vomiting.

METHODS

PubMed and Embase were searched on March 8, 2021 for randomized clinical trials investigating the effect of perioperative respiratory or hemodynamic interventions in adults undergoing non-cardiac surgery. Investigators reviewed trials for relevance, extracted data, and assessed risk of bias. Meta-analyses were performed when feasible. GRADE was used to assess the certainty in the evidence.

RESULTS

This review included 65 original trials; of these 48% had pain, nausea and/or vomiting as the primary focus. No reduction of postoperative pain was found in meta-analyses when comparing recruitment maneuvers with no recruitment, high (80%) to low (30%) fraction of oxygen, low (5-7 ml/kg) to high (9-12 ml/kg) tidal volume, or goal-directed hemodynamic therapy to standard care. In the meta-analysis comparing recruitment maneuvers with no recruitment maneuvers, patients undergoing laparoscopic gynecological surgery had less shoulder pain 24 hours postoperatively (mean difference in the numeric rating scale from 0 to 10: -1.1, 95% CI: -1.7, -0.5). In meta-analyses, comparing high to low fraction of inspired oxygen and goal-directed hemodynamic therapy to standard care in patients undergoing abdominal surgery, the risk of postoperative nausea and vomiting was reduced (odds ratio: 0.45, 95% CI: 0.24, 0.87 and 0.48, 95% CI: 0.27, 0.85). The certainty in the evidence was mostly very low to low. The results should be considered exploratory given the lack of pre-specified hypotheses and corresponding risk of Type 1 errors.

CONCLUSION

There is limited evidence regarding the impact of intraoperative respiratory and hemodynamic interventions on postoperative pain or nausea and vomiting. More definitive trials are needed to guide clinical care within this area. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.