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Atrial fibrillation after cardiac surgery (AFACS) is a serious postoperative complication. There is significant research interest in this field but also relevant heterogeneity in reported AFACS definitions and approaches used for its identification. Few data exist on the extent of this variation in clinical studies. The authors reviewed the literature since 2001 and included manuscripts reporting outcomes of AFACS in adults. They excluded smaller studies and studies in which patients did not undergo a sternotomy. The documented protocol in each manuscript was analyzed according to six different categories to determine how AFACS was defined, which techniques were used to identify it, and the inclusion and/or exclusion criteria. They also noted when a category was not described in the documented protocol. The authors identified 302 studies, of which 92 were included. Sixty-two percent of studies were randomized controlled trials. There was significant heterogeneity in the manuscripts, including the exclusion of patients with preoperative AF, the definition and duration of AF needed to meet the primary endpoint, the type of screening approach (continuous, episodic, or opportunistic), the duration of monitoring during the study period in days, the diagnosis with predefined electrocardiogram criteria, and the requirement for independent confirmation by study investigators. Furthermore, the definitions of these criteria frequently were not described. Consistent reporting standards for AFACS research are needed to advance scientific progress in the field. The authors here propose pragmatic standards for trial design and reporting standards. These include adequate sample size estimation, a clear definition of the AFACS endpoints, and a protocol for AFACS detection.

Background. Awake fiberoptic intubation is an indispensable technique that every anesthesiologist should be familiar with. Adequate topicalization, sedation and hand-eye coordination results in a safe, smooth, painless, and anxiety-free intubation for the patient. On the other hand, if the anesthesiologist does not take the time to prepare and perform the procedure adequately, it can be a very traumatic experience for all involved. Aim of this review. There are many techniques to topicalize the airway, administer sedation, and perform an FOI. In this article we aim to describe the various educational aspects and techniques required to perform a safe awake fiberoptic intubation as well as preferred methods of our ENT anesthesiologists at our institution The Cleveland Clinic. We hereby describe data regarding the number of awake fiberoptic intubations performed, and present the techniques utilized at our institution, The Cleveland Clinic. With over 9000 awake fiberoptic intubations performed at our institution, The Cleveland Clinic, since 2006 we thoroughly describe what is required to perform a successful awake fiberoptic intubation.

Background Myocardial infarction is the most common postoperative major vascular complication. Perioperative anaemia may contribute to cardiac supply–demand mismatch, and therefore myocardial injury. We therefore tested the hypothesis that the lowest in-hospital postoperative haemoglobin concentration is associated with a composite of non-fatal myocardial infarction and all-cause mortality within the first 30 days after noncardiac surgery. Methods We conducted a retrospective analysis of patients enrolled in the PeriOperative Ischemic Evaluation-2 (POISE-2) trial. We assessed the association between the lowest postoperative haemoglobin concentration during the initial hospitalisation and a composite of non-fatal myocardial infarction (Third Universal Definition) and all-cause mortality within 30 postoperative days, using a multivariable logistic regression model. Results We analysed 7227 patients from POISE-2, of whom 7.8% developed myocardial infarction; 1.5% died within 30 days. The composite primary outcome of non-fatal myocardial infarction and all-cause mortality occurred in 8.9% patients overall, ranging from 16% in patients with postoperative haemoglobin concentrations 113 g L−1. After adjusting for baseline factors, in patients with a lowest postoperative haemoglobin concentration 110 g L−1. Conclusions Postoperative anaemia may be a modifiable risk factor for non-fatal myocardial infarction and all-cause mortality.

Obesity, defined by the World Health Organization as body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30.0 kg/mRetrospective cohort study.Operating room.We analyzed electronic records of adults having cardiac and thoracic surgery requiring general anesthesia and endotracheal intubation with DLT at the Cleveland Clinic between 2008 and 2021.BMI, preoperative airway abnormalities and difficult intubation, defined as more than one intubation attempt, was assessed using multivariable logistic regression.Among 8641 analyzed anesthetics requiring DLT, 1459 (17%) were difficult intubations. After adjusting for confounders, each 5 kg/mDifficult intubations with DLT remain common, but BMI is a weak predictor thereof. For example, an increase in BMI from 20 to 40 kg/m

No abstract available Keywords: COVID-19; Cardiopulmonary resuscitation; Healthcare workers; Infection; Pandemic; Respiratory; Respiratory protection; SARS-CoV-2.

Background Whether supplemental intraoperative oxygen reduces surgical site infections remains unclear. Recent recommendations from the World Health Organization and Center for Disease Control to routinely use high inspired oxygen concentrations to reduce infection risk have been widely criticized. We therefore performed a meta-analysis to evaluate the influence of inspired oxygen on infection risk, including a recent large trial. Methods A systematic literature search was performed. Primary analysis included all eligible trials. Sensitivity analyses distinguished studies of colorectal and non-colorectal surgeries, and excluded studies with high risk of bias. Another post-hoc sensitivity analysis excluded studies from one author that appear questionable. Results The primary analysis included 26 trials (N=14,710). The RR [95%CI] for wound infection was 0.81 [0.70, 0.94] in the high vs. low inspired oxygen groups. The effect remained significant in colorectal patients (N=10,469), 0.79 [0.66, 0.96], but not in other patients (N=4,241), 0.86 [0.69, 1.09]. When restricting the analysis to studies with low risk of bias, either by strict inclusion criteria (N=5,047) or by researchers' judgment (N=12,547), no significant benefit remained: 0.84 [0.67, 1.06] and 0.89 [0.76, 1.05], respectively. Conclusions When considering all available data, intraoperative hyperoxia reduced wound infection incidence. However, no significant benefit remained when analysis was restricted to objective- or investigator-identified low-bias studies, although those analyses were not as well-powered. Meta-analysis of the most reliable studies does not suggest that supplemental oxygen substantively reduces wound infection risk, but more research is needed to fully answer this question.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection has now reached a pandemic state, affecting more than a million patients worldwide. Predictors of disease outcomes in these patients need to be urgently assessed to decrease morbidity and societal burden. Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) has been associated with worse outcomes in patients with viral infections. In this pooled analysis of 9 published studies (n = 1532 COVID-19 patients), we evaluated the association between elevated LDH levels measured at earliest time point in hospitalization and disease outcomes in patients with COVID-19. Elevated LDH levels were associated with a ~6-fold increase in odds of developing severe disease and a ~16-fold increase in odds of mortality in patients with COVID-19. Larger studies are needed to confirm these findings.

The anti-inflammatory effects of statins have been suggested to relieve postoperative pain. This retrospective study tested the association between the perioperative routine use of statins in therapeutic doses, and opioid requirements and pain scores, after hip replacement surgery.With IRB approval, data was obtained for adult patients who had elective hip replacement surgery under spinal anaesthesia at Cleveland Clinic between 2005 and 2015. Patients were compared using a joint hypothesis framework. We used the inverse probability of treatment weighting method to control for observed confounding factors (a total of 26).We included 611 statin users and 780 non-statin users. Pain score during the initial 72 h after surgery was 0.07 higher (95% CI: -0.02, 0.17) in statin users (noninferiority test in both directions P0.001). The estimated ratio of geometric means in the cumulative i.v. morphine equivalent opioid consumption was 1.01 (95% CI: 0.93, 1.10) for statin vs non-statin users (noninferiority test P=0.001 in the hypothesized direction and0.001 in the other direction) during the initial 72 h after surgery. The statin and non-statin patients were deemed equivalent on postoperative opioid consumption and pain score.This is the first large retrospective clinical study that investigates the effects of statin use on postoperative pain and opioid consumption. We observed no difference between statin users and non-users during the initial 72 h after hip surgery. Our findings do not support the routine use of statins as part of an analgesic regimen.

Introduction Pediatric cardiac arrest is an uncommon but critical life-threatening event requiring effective cardiopulmonary resuscitation. High-quality cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is essential, but is poorly performed, even by highly skilled healthcare providers. The recently described two-thumb chest compression technique (nTTT) consists of the two thumbs directed at the angle of 90° to the chest while having the fingers fist-clenched. This technique might facilitate adequate chest-compression depth, chest-compression rate and rate of full chest-pressure relief. Methods 42 paramedics from the national Emergency Medical Service of Poland performed three single-rescuer CPR sessions for 10 minutes each. Each session was randomly assigned to the conventional two-thumb (TTHT), the conventional two-finger (TFT) or the nTTT. The manikin used for this study was connected with an arterial blood pressure measurement device and blood measurements were documented on a 10-seconds cycle. Results The nTTT provided significant higher systolic (82 vs. 30 vs. 41 mmHg). A statistically significant difference was noticed between nTTT and TFT (p Conclusions The new nTTT technique generated higher arterial blood pressures compared to established chest compression techniques using an infant manikin model, suggesting a more effective chest compression. Our results have important clinical implications as nTTT was simple to perform and could be widely taught to both healthcare professionals and bystanders. Whether this technique translates to improved outcomes over existing techniques needs further animal studies and subsequent human trials.

Background Chest compressions and ventilation are lifesaving tasks during cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Besides oxygenation, endotracheal intubation (ETI) during CPR is performed to avoid aspiration of gastric contents. If intubation is difficult or impossible, supraglottic airway devices are utilized. We tested six different airway devices regarding their potential to protect against regurgitation and aspiration during CPR in a randomized experimental human cadaver study. Methods Five-hundred ml of 0.01% methylene-blue-solution were instilled into the stomach of 30 adult human cadavers via an oro-gastric tube. The cadavers were then randomly assigned to one of six groups, resulting in 5 cadavers in each group. Airway management was performed with either bag-valve ventilation, Laryngeal Tube, EasyTube, Laryngeal Mask (Classic), I-Gel, or ETI. Thereafter 5 min of CPR were performed according to the 2010 Guidelines of the European Resuscitation Council. Pulmonary aspiration was defined as the presence of methylene-blue-solution below the vocal cords or the ETI cuff as assessed by fiber-optic bronchoscopy. Results Thirty cadavers were included (14 females, 16 males). Aspiration was detected in three out of five cadavers receiving bag-valve ventilation and in two out of five intubated with LMA or I-Gel. In cadavers intubated with the LT, aspiration occurred in one out of five cases. No aspiration could be detected in cadavers intubated with ETI and EasyTube. Conclusion This study provides experimental evidence that, during CPR, ETI offers superior protection against regurgitation and pulmonary aspiration of gastric contents than supraglottic airway devices or bag-valve ventilation.

Background Efficiently performed basic life support (BLS) after cardiac arrest is proven to be effective. However, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is strenuous and rescuers' performance declines rapidly over time. Audio-visual feedback devices reporting CPR quality may prevent this decline. We aimed to investigate the effect of various CPR feedback devices on CPR quality. Methods In this open, prospective, randomised, controlled trial we compared three CPR feedback devices (PocketCPR ® , CPRmeter ® , iPhone app PocketCPR ® ) with standard BLS without feedback in a simulated scenario. 240 trained medical students performed single rescuer BLS on a manikin for 8min. Effective compression (compressions with correct depth, pressure point and sufficient decompression) as well as compression rate, flow time fraction and ventilation parameters were compared between the four groups. Results Study participants using the PocketCPR ® performed 17±19% effective compressions compared to 32±28% with CPRmeter ® , 25±27% with the iPhone app PocketCPR ® , and 35±30% applying standard BLS (PocketCPR ® vs. CPRmeter ® p =0.007, PocketCPR ® vs. standard BLS p =0.001, others: ns). PocketCPR ® and CPRmeter ® prevented a decline in effective compression over time, but overall performance in the PocketCPR ® group was considerably inferior to standard BLS. Compression depth and rate were within the range recommended in the guidelines in all groups. Conclusion While we found differences between the investigated CPR feedback devices, overall BLS quality was suboptimal in all groups. Surprisingly, effective compression was not improved by any CPR feedback device compared to standard BLS. All feedback devices caused substantial delay in starting CPR, which may worsen outcome.

Introduction Endotracheal intubation (ETI) is the most widespread method for emergency airway management. Several studies reported that ETI requires considerable skill and experience and if performed incorrectly, may result in serious adverse events. Unrecognized tube misplacement or oesophageal intubation is associated with high prehospital morbidity. This study investigates the usability of supraglottic airway devices compared to ETI and the skill retention of 41 previously inexperienced paramedics following training using a manikin model. Methods 41 paramedics participated in this study. None had prior experience in airway management, apart from bag-valve ventilation. After a standardised audio-visual lecture lasting 45min, the paramedics participated in a practical demonstration using the advanced patient simulator SimMan ® (Laerdal Medical, Stavanger, Norway). Afterwards, paramedics were instructed to perform airway-management using seven different techniques to secure the airway (ETI, Laryngeal mask unique [LMA], Proseal, Laryngeal tube disposable [LT-D ® ], I-Gel ® , Combitube ® , and EasyTube ® ) following a randomized sequence. Participants underwent reassessment after 3 months without any further training or practice in airway-management. Results During the initial training session, ETI was successfully performed in 78% of cases, while 3 months later the success rate was 58%. For the supraglottic airway devices, five out of six were successfully used by all paramedics at both time points, the exception being Proseal ® . Our data show successful skill retention (success rate: 100%) after 3 months for five out of six supraglottic airway devices. Time to ventilation (T3) was significantly less for LMA, LT-D ® and I-Gel ® at all time points compared to ETI. Conclusion ETI performed by inexperienced paramedics is associated with a low success rate. In contrast, supraglottic airway devices like LMA, LT-D ® , I-Gel ® , Combitube ® and EasyTube ® are fast, safe and easy-to-use. Within the limitations of a manikin-study, this study suggests that inexperienced medical staff might benefit from using supraglottic airway devices for emergency airway management.