David B. Wax

The effect of an interactive visual reminder in an anesthesia information management system on timeliness of prophylactic antibiotic administration.

BACKGROUND:To reduce the incidence of surgical site infection, preoperative antibiotics should be administered within 60 min before surgical incision. The purpose of this study was to determine whether adding a visual interactive electronic reminder with a message related to antibiotic administration to our anesthesia information management system would increase compliance with prophylactic antibiotic guidelines. METHODS:We retrospectively studied electronic anesthesia records of ambulatory and day-of-surgery admission surgical cases in which one of our usual prophylactic antibiotics was administered from June 2004 through December 2005, an interval that includes cases both before and after the February 2005 implementation of the new reminder. Compliance was defined as documented antibiotic administration within 60 min before the surgical procedure starting time. Noncompliant cases were divided into those in which dosing was too early or too late. RESULTS:Compliance for 4987 cases before and 9478 cases after the reminder was implemented increased from 82.4% to 89.1% (P < 0.01). This increase was found both for attending anesthesiologists assisted by a resident or nurse anesthetist (82.9% before vs 89.1% after, P < 0.01) and for attending anesthesiologists working alone (80.1% before vs 89.3% after, P < 0.01). The improvement in compliance was associated with a decrease in the incidence of antibiotics administered too late (i.e., after surgical incision) (15.2% before vs 8.1% after, P < 0.01), but with no significant change in the incidence of antibiotics administered too early (i.e., more than 60 min before skin incision) (2.4% before vs 2.8% after, P = 0.07). CONCLUSIONS:The implementation of a visual interactive electronic reminder regarding administration of preoperative antibiotics in an anesthesia information management system was associated with a sustained increase in compliance with surgical prophylactic antibiotic administration timing guidelines.

The risk and outcomes of epidural hematomas after perioperative and obstetric epidural catheterization: a report from the Multicenter Perioperative Outcomes Group Research Consortium.

BACKGROUND:In this study, we sought to determine the frequency and outcomes of epidural hematomas after epidural catheterization. METHODS:Eleven centers participating in the Multicenter Perioperative Outcomes Group used electronic anesthesia information systems and quality assurance databases to identify patients who had epidural catheters inserted for either obstetrical or surgical indications. From this cohort, patients undergoing laminectomy for the evacuation of hematoma within 6 weeks of epidural placement were identified. RESULTS:Seven of 62,450 patients undergoing perioperative epidural catheterizations developed hematoma requiring surgical evacuation. The event rate was 11.2 × 10−5 (95% confidence interval [CI], 4.5 × 10−5 to 23.1 × 10−5). Four of the 7 had anticoagulation/antiplatelet therapy that deviated from American Society of Regional Anesthesia guidelines. None of 79,837 obstetric patients with epidural catheterizations developed hematoma (upper limit of the 95% CI, 4.6 × 10−5). The hematoma rate in obstetric epidural catheterizations was significantly lower than in perioperative epidural catheterizations (P = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS:In this series, the 95% CI for the frequency of epidural hematoma requiring laminectomy after epidural catheter placement for perioperative anesthesia/analgesia was 1 event per 22,189 placements to 1 event per 4330 placements. Risk was significantly lower in obstetric epidurals.

Transesophageal echocardiography utilization in high-volume liver transplantation centers in the United States.

OBJECTIVE Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) during liver transplantation (LT) has been shown to be helpful in managing fluid therapy, monitoring myocardial function, and identifying intraoperative LT complications. The present study sought to investigate the current utilization of TEE by anesthesiologists during LT as well as issues of training and credentialing in this monitoring modality. DESIGN A survey distributed by electronic mail. SETTING LT centers in the United States in which more than 50 liver transplantation procedures were performed annually. PARTICIPANTS Survey respondents were contact persons in the LT divisions of the anesthesiology department of selected centers. INTERVENTIONS Data collection only. MEASUREMENT AND MAIN RESULTS A total of 40 high-volume LT centers were identified, and survey responses were received from 30 of those. Among 217 anesthesiologists, 86% performed TEE in some or all LT cases. Most users performed a limited-scope examination, although some performed a comprehensive TEE examination during LT. Most users acquired their TEE skills informally. Only 12% of users were board certified to perform TEE, and only 1 center reported having a policy related to credentialing requirements for TEE. CONCLUSIONS There is high utilization of intraoperative TEE by anesthesiologists to perform limited-scope examinations during LT cases. Training to perform such examinations is mostly informal, and credentialing processes are lacking. An opportunity exists to establish guidelines, training programs, and standards for quality assurance in the use of this valuable monitoring modality.

Invasive and Concomitant Noninvasive Intraoperative Blood Pressure Monitoring Observed Differences in Measurements and Associated Therapeutic Interventions

Background: Noninvasive (NIBP) and intraarterial (ABP) blood pressure monitoring are used under different circumstances and may yield different values. The authors endeavored to characterize these differences and hypothesized that there could be differences in interventions associated with the use of ABP alone ([ABP]) versus ABP in combination with NIBP ([ABP+NIBP]). Methods: Simultaneous measurements of ABP and NIBP made during noncardiac cases were extracted from electronic anesthesia records; the differences were subjected to regression analysis. Records of blood products, vasopressors, and antihypertensives administered were also extracted, and associations between the use of these therapies and monitoring strategy ([ABP] vs. [ABP+NIBP]) were tested using univariate, multivariate, and propensity score matched analyses. Results: Among 24,225 cases, 63% and 37% used [ABP+NIBP] and [ABP], respectively. Systolic NIBP was likely to be higher than ABP when ABP was less than 111 mmHg and lower than ABP otherwise. Among patients with hypotension, transfusion occurred in 27% versus 43% of patients in the [ABP+NIBP] versus [ABP] group, respectively (odds ratio = 0.4; 95% CI 0.35–0.46), and 7% versus 18% of patients in the [ABP+NIBP] versus [ABP] group received vasopressor infusions, respectively (P < 0.01). Among hypertensive patients, 12% versus 44% of those in the [ABP+NIBP] versus [ABP] group received antihypertensive agents, respectively (P < 0.01). Conclusions: NIBP was generally higher than ABP during periods of hypotension and lower than ABP during periods of hypertension. The use of NIBP measurements to supplement ABP measurements was associated with decreased use of blood transfusions, vasopressor infusions, and antihypertensive medications compared with the use of ABP alone.

Development of a module for point-of-care charge capture and submission using an anesthesia information management system.

Background:The use of electronic charge vouchers in anesthesia practice is limited, and the effects on practice management are unreported. The authors hypothesized that the new billing technology would improve the effectiveness of the billing interface and enhance financial practice management measures. Methods:A custom application was created to extract billing elements from the anesthesia information management system. The application incorporates business rules to determine whether individual cases have all required elements for a complete and compliant bill. The metrics of charge lag and days in accounts receivable were assessed before and after the implementation of the electronic charge voucher system. Results:The average charge lag decreased by 7.3 days after full implementation. The total days in accounts receivable, controlling for fee schedule changes and credit balances, decreased by 10.1 days after implementation, representing a one-time revenue gain equivalent to 3.0% of total annual receipts. There are additional ongoing cost savings related to reduction of personnel and expenses related to paper charge voucher handling. Conclusions:Anesthesia information management systems yield financial and operational benefits by speeding up the revenue cycle and by reducing direct costs and compliance risks related to the billing and collection processes. The observed reductions in charge lag and days in accounts receivable may be of benefit in calculating the return on investment that is attributable to the adoption of anesthesia information management systems and electronic charge transmission.

Radiologic assessment of potential sites for needle decompression of a tension pneumothorax

BACKGROUND:The recommended treatment of suspected tension pneumothorax is immediate needle decompression. Recommended sites and needle sizes for this procedure vary, and there are published reports of failed decompression as well as iatrogenic hemothorax. We investigated the optimal needle length and relative safety of three potential needle decompression sites. METHODS:Using thoracic computed tomography scans of 100 adults, we measured the distance from skin surface to pleura and to intrathoracic structures at the level of the sternal angle at the midhemithoracic line (MHL), and at the level of the xiphoid process at the anterior axillary and midaxillary lines, as well as the distance from the sternal midline to internal mammary vessels. RESULTS:Median distances from the midline to the MHL and internal mammary vessels were 6.1 and 3.0 cm, respectively. Median (range) depth-to-pleura below the skin surface at the MHL, midaxillary lines, and anterior axillary line sites was 3.1 (1.4–6.9), 3.5 (1.7–9.3+), and 2.6 (1.0–7.7+) cm, respectively. Overall, there was a lower margin of safety on the left side compared with the right side, and the MHL site was safest on both sides. CONCLUSIONS:Needle decompression of suspected tension pneumothorax should be attempted in the MHL at the level of the sternal angle using a needle at least 7 cm long inserted perpendicular to the horizontal plane. This approach should yield the highest success rate and margin of safety compared with other sites.

Intraoperative Management of Robotic-Assisted Versus Open Radical Prostatectomy

Robotic-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy was found to be a shorter procedure characterized by minimal blood loss, reduced fluid requirements, and shorter hospital stay compared with traditional open procedures.

A Comparison of Transmittance and Reflectance Pulse Oximetry During Vascular Surgery

BACKGROUND: New reflectance pulse oximetry probes placed on the forehead may be an improvement over transmittance probes placed on a finger, toe, or earlobe in patients with compromised perfusion. We compared the reliability and accuracy of the 2 types of probes in patients undergoing vascular surgery. METHODS: Patients with peripheral vascular disease undergoing vascular surgery under general anesthesia were monitored with both a transmittance earlobe probe and a reflectance forehead probe. Spo2 was recorded continuously from both probes, and arterial blood gas samples were analyzed when clinically indicated. The average values from both probes over each minute were compared using Bland-Altman analysis. RESULTS: Twenty patients were included yielding a total of 3993 1-min averaged data pairs. Neither probe failed to report a value for more than 1 min. A Bland-Altman plot showed the limits of agreement between the probes of −4.0% to +2.6%. Twenty-eight arterial blood samples were analyzed for 14 patients and Sao2 closely matched both Spo2 probe values at the time of sampling. Compared with Sao2, analysis demonstrated limits of agreement of −4.7% to 6.1% for ear and −3.3% to 3.4% for forehead sites. CONCLUSIONS: The new reflectance forehead Spo2 probe tested has acceptable agreement with the older transmittance probe placed on the earlobe for pulse oximetry within typical ranges of Spo2 in patients undergoing vascular surgery.

Intraoperative carbon dioxide management and outcomes.

Background and objective Intraoperative hyperventilation to induce hypocapnia has historically been common practice and has physiological effects that may be detrimental. In contrast, hypercapnia has effects that may be beneficial. As these effects may influence postoperative recovery, we investigated the association between variations in intraoperative carbon dioxide and length of hospital stay in patients who had elective colon resections and hysterectomies. Methods Data were extracted from electronic records for elective colon resections and hysterectomies done from 2002 to 2008. Patients were divided into four groups based on surgical procedure and use of laparoscopic technique. Parameters extracted for analysis included mean end-tidal carbon dioxide (EtCO2) during the surgical procedure as well as others previously purported to affect postoperative outcomes. In-hospital length of stay (LOS) was determined from administrative records and was used as the independent outcome variable. For each group, Poisson regression analysis was performed to find factors that were independently associated with the outcome. Results A total of 3421 case records in our database met inclusion criteria. Median EtCO2 was 31 mmHg. Median LOS was 7 and 5 days for open and laparoscopic colon resections, and 3 and 2 days for open and laparoscopic hysterectomies, respectively. Regression analysis revealed a statistically significant independent association between higher EtCO2 and reduced LOS for colon resection and open hysterectomy. Conclusion There is a significant association between higher intraoperative EtCO2 and shorter LOS after colon resection and open hysterectomy. The common practice of inducing hypocapnia may be deleterious, and maintaining normocapnia or permitting hypercapnia may improve clinical outcomes.

Association between anesthesiologist experience and mortality after orthotopic liver transplantation

The anesthesiologist has been recognized as an integral member of the liver transplant team, and previous studies have demonstrated that inter‐anesthesiologist variability can be a driver of outcomes for high‐risk patients. We hypothesized that anesthesiologist experience, defined as the number of previous liver transplants performed at our institution, the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, would be independently associated with outcomes for liver transplant patients. Eight hundred forty‐nine liver transplants performed between January 2003 and January 2013 with a total of 22 anesthesiologists were analyzed. Each transplant was assigned an incremental case number that corresponded to the number of transplants that the attending anesthesiologist had already performed at our institution. Several perioperative covariates were controlled for in the context of a generalized linear mixed effects model to detail the influence of threshold levels of the incremental case number on the primary outcome, 30‐day mortality, and a secondary outcome, 30‐day graft failure. Sensitivity analyses were conducted to confirm the robustness of these findings. An incremental case number ≤ 5 was associated with a significantly greater risk of 30‐day mortality (odds ratio = 2.24, 95% confidence interval = 1.11‐4.54, P = 0.025), and there was evidence suggestive of a greater risk of 30‐day graft failure (odds ratio = 1.93, 95% confidence interval = 0.95‐3.93, P = 0.071). Sensitivity analyses ruled out threats to the validity of these findings, including dropout effects and time trends in the overall performance of the transplantation unit. In conclusion, this study shows that an anesthesiologists level of experience has a significant effect on outcomes for liver transplant recipients, with increased mortality and possibly graft failure during a providers first 5 cases. These findings may indicate the need for increased training and supervision for anesthesiologists joining the liver transplant team. Liver Transpl 21:89‐95, 2015.