Daily Anesthesiology Research Analysis

BACKGROUND: Preventing postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) as one of the most significant complications of cardiovascular surgeries remains a major clinical challenge. We conducted a systematic review with network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials, to identify the most effective and safe anti-inflammatory drugs to prevent new-onset POAF. METHODS: MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library were searched without language or publication-date restriction on August 8, 2022 (updated on August 8, 2023). We assessed the risk of bias of included trials using the Cochrane risk-of-bias 2.0 tool. We conducted a frequentist random-effects network meta-analysis in R, and we assessed the certainty of evidence using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluations (GRADE) approach. RESULTS: A total of 85 trials reported the incidence of new-onset POAF, including 18,981 patients. Use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (relative risk [RR] 0.37 [95% confidence interval [CI] 0.23-0.59]) and statins (RR 0.56 [95% CI 0.45-0.7]) potentially reduced the risk of POAF compared with placebo (both with a moderate certainty level). Use of fish oil in combination with vitamins C and E (RR 0.30 [95% CI 0.13-0.68]) may reduce the risk of POAF, compared with placebo (low level of certainty). Use of colchicine (RR 0.62 [95% CI 0.45- 0.85]), corticosteroids (RR 0.70 [95% CI 0.59-0.82]) and N-acetylcysteine (RR 0.69 [95% CI 0.49- 0.98]) may reduce the risk of POAF (all with a low level of certainty). None of the interventions had a significant effect on mortality rate or risk of serious adverse effects. CONCLUSIONS: Use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and statins probably are effective in preventing new-onset POAF, with a moderate level of certainty, compared to placebo.

INTRODUCTION: Sedation practices for colonoscopy indeed vary widely around the globe. Due to a lack of data on intravenous paracetamol, we aimed to investigate the clinical efficacy of intravenous paracetamol compared to intravenous fentanyl under propofol deep sedation for colonoscopy. METHODS: A total of 225 patients who underwent colonoscopy at Siriraj Hospital were randomly assigned to two groups. All patients underwent deep sedation with propofol and received intravenous (iv) paracetamol (group P, n = 113) or iv fentanyl (group F, n = 112). All patients received a premedication of 0.02-0.03 mg/kg of midazolam intravenously. Fifteen to thirty minutes before the procedure, patients in group P were administered 1000 mg of iv paracetamol, while those in group F received 0.001 mg/kg of iv fentanyl. All patients were oxygenated with 100% O RESULTS: All colonoscopies were successfully completed. There were no significant differences in patient characteristics, duration of the procedure, endoscopist and patient satisfaction, patient tolerance, or ease of the procedure between the two groups. However, group F experienced significantly higher rates of upper airway obstruction and oxygen desaturation during the procedure compared to group P. No serious complications were observed in either group. CONCLUSION: Intravenous paracetamol with propofol deep sedation in adult patients is non-inferior to intravenous fentanyl for successful colonoscopy completion. Sedation-related complications were relatively lower in the propofol deep sedation with iv paracetamol group compared to the propofol deep sedation with iv fentanyl group. REGISTRATION: This trial was registered with the Thai Clinical Trial Registry (TCTR 20190321002).

BACKGROUND: A previous study showed that airway ultrasound, specifically the distance from the skin to the hyoid bone (DSHB), may be correlated with a higher risk of difficult mask ventilation (DMV). However, the study was conducted in Italy and lacks data for the Asian and Thai populations. This study aimed to predict DMV using pre-operative ultrasonography to measure the DSHB and from the skin to the thyroid isthmus (DSTI) in Thai patients undergoing elective surgery under general anesthesia. METHODS: In total, 189 patients who underwent general anesthesia during elective surgery were enrolled in this prospective cohort observational study. Pre-operative physical examinations and airway evaluations were performed as usual. Airway ultrasound was performed to measure DSHB and DSTI before the anesthetic procedure. Anesthesiologists and nurse anesthetists performed bag-and-mask ventilation. DMV was assessed and recorded according to Han's mask ventilation classification in which DMV-0 indicates no attempt at mask ventilation; DMV-I indicates successful ventilation by mask; DMV-II indicates ventilation by mask with oral airway/adjuvant ventilation; DMV-III indicates that ventilation required two providers; and DMV-IV indicates the patient's inability to undergo mask ventilation. RESULTS: Thirty (17%) patients were classified as having DMV-0, and DMV-I, II, and III classifications were observed in 126(67%), 18(10%), and 12(6%) patients, respectively. None of the patients were classified as DMV-IV. The DSHB medians were 0.4(0.3-0.6), 0.7(0.5-1), 0.7(0.6-0.8), and 0.6(0.3-0.9) cm in DMV-0, I, II, and III, respectively (p < 0.001). The DSTI medians were 0.9(0.8-1.1), 0.8(0.7-1.1), 0.7(0.6-0.9), and 0.8(0.8-1.4) cm for DMV-0, I, II, and III, respectively (p = 0.041). Multivariate logistic regression indicated that the following factors were associated with difficult mask ventilation (DMV-III): male sex, modified Mallampati classification III, edentulousness, DSHB, and DSTI, with an area under the curve of 0.89. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that airway ultrasonography to determine DSHB and DSTI during patients' routine physical examinations significantly improved the prediction of DMV. Patients classified as having DMV-III require prompt management for airway difficulties. However, the individual factors DSHB and DSTI alone are insufficient to predict DMV. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registration number: TCTR2020093002.