Daily Anesthesiology Research Analysis

BACKGROUND: While evidence from preclinical and observational cohort studies have suggested potential disparities in tumour behaviour associated with the choice of intra-operative anaesthetics, clinical evidence of tumour recurrence and metastasis remains inconclusive. We aimed to compare the impact of intra-operative anaesthesia on oncologic outcomes following hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma. METHODS: Adult patients scheduled for elective hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma were assigned randomly (1:1) to either propofol-based total intravenous anaesthesia or sevoflurane-based inhalational anaesthesia. For recurrence-free survival, overall survival, intrahepatic recurrence-free survival and extrahepatic recurrence-free survival, the survival curves of the two groups were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared with the log-rank test. The primary outcome was one-year recurrence-free survival. RESULTS: Among the 536 patients enrolled, primary analysis comprised 228 and 226 patients in the total intravenous anaesthesia and sevoflurane-based inhalational anaesthesia groups, respectively. The probability of recurrence-free survival at one year was 79.1% (47 events) and 77.7% (50 events) in the total intravenous anaesthesia and sevoflurane-based inhalational anaesthesia groups, respectively (adjusted hazard ratio 1.04, 95%CI 0.72-1.52). The probability of intrahepatic and extrahepatic recurrence-free survival, as well as overall survival at one year, was not significantly different between total intravenous anaesthesia and sevoflurane-based inhalational anaesthesia: 81.3% (42 events) vs. 81.7% (41 events); 91.5% (19 events) vs. 88.8% (25 events); 99.1% (2 events) vs. 100.0% (no event), respectively. Subgroup analyses revealed that in patients undergoing open hepatectomy, total intravenous anaesthesia was associated with a significantly lower hazard of tumour recurrence or death (hazard ratio 0.49, 95%CI 0.25-0.95, p = 0.034), while in patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery, no significant difference was observed (hazard ratio 1.14, 95%CI 0.73-1.80, p = 0.558). DISCUSSION: Intra-operative anaesthesia technique did not affect postoperative recurrence and overall survival in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma undergoing hepatectomy.

OBJECTIVES: Elderly frailty patients are at particular risk of sedation-related adverse events (SRAEs) during sedation. This study aimed to assess whether intravenous lidocaine could reduce the incidence of SRAEs in elderly frailty patients undergoing endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP). METHODS: A total of 210 elderly frailty patients scheduled for ERCP were randomly divided into two groups: lidocaine and control. Patients in the lidocaine group received intravenous lidocaine (1.0 mg/kg) before anesthesia induction, followed by continuous intravenous infusion (2.0 mg/kg/h) during ERCP. The control group received an equal volume of saline solution. The primary endpoint was the composite incidence of SRAEs during ERCP. Secondary endpoints were propofol consumption, VAS score, endoscopists' and patients' satisfaction scores and lidocaine-related adverse events and so on. RESULTS: The composite incidence of SRAEs in the lidocaine group was significantly lower than in the control group (41.05% vs. 21.86%, p < 0.05). The propofol requirement (436.11 ± 118.90, 388.54 ± 149.65. p < 0.001) and VAS score of patients (3.02 ± 1.07, 2.54 ± 1.10. p < 0.05) in the lidocaine group were significantly lower than those in the control group. The endoscopists' satisfaction scores (7.77 ± 1.12, 8.23 ± 1.10. p < 0.05) and patients' satisfaction scores (8.53 ± 0.95, 8.98 ± 0.86. p < 0.05) in lidocaine group were significantly higher than those in the control group. CONCLUSIONS: Intravenous lidocaine can significantly decrease the incidence of SRAEs for ERCP procedures in elderly frailty patients, with no increase in lidocaine or other related adverse events. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (Trial ID: ChiCTR2300067796, https://www.chictr.org.cn/showproj.html?proj=185763 ).

BACKGROUND: Predicting complete liberation from mechanical ventilation (MV) is still challenging. Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) offers a non-invasive measure of regional ventilation distribution and could bring additional information. RESEARCH QUESTION: Whether the display of regional ventilation distribution during a Spontaneous Breathing Trial (SBT) could help at predicting early and successful liberation from MV. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Patients were monitored with EIT during the SBT. The tidal image was divided into ventral and dorsal regions and displayed simultaneously. We explored the ventral-to-dorsal ventilation difference in percentage, and its association with clinical outcomes. Liberation success was defined pragmatically as passing SBT followed by extubation within 24 h without reintubation for 7 days. Failure included use of rescue therapy, reintubation within 7 days, tracheostomy, and not being extubated within 24 h after succesful SBT. A training cohort was used for discovery, followed by a validation cohort. RESULTS: Among a total of 98 patients analyzed, 85 passed SBT (87%), but rapid liberation success occurred only in 40; 13.5% of extubated patients required reintubation. From the first minutes to the entire SBT duration, the absolute ventral-to-dorsal difference was consistently smaller in liberation success compared to all subgroups of failure (p < 0.0001). An absolute difference at 5 min of SBT > 20% was associated with failure of liberation, with sensitivity and specificity of 71% and 78% and positive predictive value 81% in a validation cohort. CONCLUSION: During SBT, a large ventral-to-dorsal difference in ventilation indicated by EIT may help to rapidly identify patients at risk of liberation failure.