The way towards ethical anesthesia care: no aim - no game - no fame or blame?

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: This review explores the intricacies of ethical anesthesia, exploring the necessity for precision anesthesia and its impact on patient-reported outcomes. The primary objective is to advocate for a defined aim, promoting the implementation of rules and feedback systems. The ultimate goal is to enhance precision anesthesia care, ensuring patient safety through the implementation of a teamwork and the integration of feedback mechanisms. RECENT FINDINGS: Recent strategies in the field of anesthesia have evolved from intraoperative monitorization to a wider perioperative patient-centered precision care. Nonetheless, implementing this approach encounters significant obstacles. The article explores the evidence supporting the need for a defined aim and applicable rules for precision anesthesia's effectiveness. The implementation of the safety culture is underlined. The review delves into the teamwork description with structured feedback systems. SUMMARY: Anesthesia is a multifaceted discipline that involves various stakeholders. The primary focus is delivering personalized precision care. This review underscores the importance of establishing clear aims, defined rules, and fostering effective and well tolerated teamwork with accurate feedback for improving patient-reported outcomes. The Safe Brain Initiative approach, emphasizing algorithmic monitoring and systematic follow-up, is crucial in implementing a fundamental and standardized reporting approach within patient-centered anesthesia care practice.

The Delphi Delirium Management Algorithms. A practical tool for clinicians, the result of a modified Delphi expert consensus approach.

Delirium is common in hospitalised patients, and there is currently no specific treatment. Identifying and treating underlying somatic causes of delirium is the first priority once delirium is diagnosed. Several international guidelines provide clinicians with an evidence-based approach to screening, diagnosis and symptomatic treatment. However, current guidelines do not offer a structured approach to identification of underlying causes. A panel of 37 internationally recognised delirium experts from diverse medical backgrounds worked together in a modified Delphi approach via an online platform. Consensus was reached after five voting rounds. The final product of this project is a set of three delirium management algorithms (the Delirium Delphi Algorithms), one for ward patients, one for patients after cardiac surgery and one for patients in the intensive care unit.

Patient-centered precision care in anaesthesia - the PC-square (PC) 2 approach.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: This review navigates the landscape of precision anaesthesia, emphasising tailored and individualized approaches to anaesthetic administration. The aim is to elucidate precision medicine principles, applications, and potential advancements in anaesthesia. The review focuses on the current state, challenges, and transformative opportunities in precision anaesthesia. RECENT FINDINGS: The review explores evidence supporting precision anaesthesia, drawing insights from neuroscientific fields. It probes the correlation between high-dose intraoperative opioids and increased postoperative consumption, highlighting how precision anaesthesia, especially through initiatives like Safe Brain Initiative (SBI), could address these issues. The SBI represents multidisciplinary collaboration in perioperative care. SBI fosters effective communication among surgical teams, anaesthesiologists, and other medical professionals. SUMMARY: Precision anaesthesia tailors care to individual patients, incorporating genomic insights, personalised drug regimens, and advanced monitoring techniques. From EEG to cerebral/somatic oximetry, these methods enhance precision. Standardised reporting, patient-reported outcomes, and continuous quality improvement, alongside initiatives like SBI, contribute to improved patient outcomes. Precision anaesthesia, underpinned by collaborative programs, emerges as a promising avenue for enhancing perioperative care.

Update of the European Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine evidence-based and consensus-based guideline on postoperative delirium in adult patients.

Postoperative delirium (POD) remains a common, dangerous and resource-consuming adverse event but is often preventable. The whole peri-operative team can play a key role in its management. This update to the 2017 ESAIC Guideline on the prevention of POD is evidence-based and consensus-based and considers the literature between 01 April 2015, and 28 February 2022. The search terms of the broad literature search were identical to those used in the first version of the guideline published in 2017. POD was defined in accordance with the DSM-5 criteria. POD had to be measured with a validated POD screening tool, at least once per day for at least 3 days starting in the recovery room or postanaesthesia care unit on the day of surgery or, at latest, on postoperative day 1. Recent literature confirmed the pathogenic role of surgery-induced inflammation, and this concept reinforces the positive role of multicomponent strategies aimed to reduce the surgical stress response. Although some putative precipitating risk factors are not modifiable (length of surgery, surgical site), others (such as depth of anaesthesia, appropriate analgesia and haemodynamic stability) are under the control of the anaesthesiologists. Multicomponent preoperative, intra-operative and postoperative preventive measures showed potential to reduce the incidence and duration of POD, confirming the pivotal role of a comprehensive and team-based approach to improve patients' clinical and functional status.

Postoperative neurocognitive disorders: A clinical guide.

For years, postoperative cognitive outcomes have steadily garnered attention, and in the past decade, they have remained at the forefront. This prominence is primarily due to empirical research emphasizing their potential to compromise patient autonomy, reduce quality of life, and extend hospital stays, and increase morbidity and mortality rates, especially impacting elderly patients. The underlying pathophysiological process might be attributed to surgical and anaesthesiological-induced stress, leading to subsequent neuroinflammation, neurotoxicity, burst suppression and the development of hypercoagulopathy. The beneficial impact of multi-faceted strategies designed to mitigate the surgical and perioperative stress response has been suggested. While certain potential risk factors are difficult to modify (e.g., invasiveness of surgery), others - including a more personalized depth of anaesthesia (EEG-guided), suitable analgesia, and haemodynamic stability - fall under the purview of anaesthesiologists. The ESAIC Safe Brain Initiative research group recommends implementing a bundle of non-invasive preventive measures as a standard for achieving more patient-centred care. Implementing multi-faceted preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative preventive initiatives has demonstrated the potential to decrease the incidence and duration of postoperative delirium. This further validates the importance of a holistic, team-based approach in enhancing patients' clinical and functional outcomes. This review aims to present evidence-based recommendations for preventing, diagnosing, and treating postoperative neurocognitive disorders with the Safe Brain Initiative approach.

EEG microstate quantifiers and state space descriptors during anaesthesia in patients with postoperative delirium: a descriptive analysis.

Postoperative delirium is a serious sequela of surgery and surgery-related anaesthesia. One recommended method to prevent postoperative delirium is using bi-frontal EEG recording. The single, processed index of depth of anaesthesia allows the anaesthetist to avoid episodes of suppression EEG and excessively deep anaesthesia. The study data presented here were based on multichannel (19 channels) EEG recordings during anaesthesia. This enabled the analysis of various parameters of global electrical brain activity. These parameters were used to compare microstate topographies under anaesthesia with those in healthy volunteers and to analyse changes in microstate quantifiers and EEG global state space descriptors with increasing exposure to anaesthesia. Seventy-three patients from the Surgery Depth of Anaesthesia and Cognitive Outcome study (SRCTN 36437985) received intraoperative multichannel EEG recordings. Altogether, 720 min of artefact-free EEG data, including 210 min (29.2%) of suppression EEG, were analysed. EEG microstate topographies, microstate quantifiers (duration, frequency of occurrence and global field power) and the state space descriptors sigma (overall EEG power), phi (generalized frequency) and omega (number of uncorrelated brain processes) were evaluated as a function of duration of exposure to anaesthesia, suppression EEG and subsequent development of postoperative delirium. The major analyses involved covariate-adjusted linear mixed-effects models. The older (71 ± 7 years), predominantly male (60%) patients received a median exposure of 210 (range: 75-675) min of anaesthesia. During seven postoperative days, 21 patients (29%) developed postoperative delirium. Microstate topographies under anaesthesia resembled topographies from healthy and much younger awake persons. With increasing duration of exposure to anaesthesia, single microstate quantifiers progressed differently in suppression or non-suppression EEG and in patients with or without subsequent postoperative delirium. The most pronounced changes occurred during enduring suppression EEG in patients with subsequent postoperative delirium: duration and frequency of occurrence of microstates C and D progressed in opposite directions, and the state space descriptors showed a pattern of declining uncorrelated brain processes (omega) combined with increasing EEG variance (sigma). With increasing exposure to general anaesthesia, multiple changes in the dynamics of microstates and global EEG parameters occurred. These changes varied partly between suppression and non-suppression EEG and between patients with or without subsequent postoperative delirium. Ongoing suppression EEG in patients with subsequent postoperative delirium was associated with reduced network complexity in combination with increased overall EEG power. Additionally, marked changes in quantifiers in microstate C and in microstate D occurred. These putatively adverse intraoperative trajectories in global electrical brain activity may be seen as preceding and ultimately predicting postoperative delirium.

[Prevention of Post-operative Delirium]. / Prävention des postoperativen Delirs.

Postoperative delirium (POD) is an adverse but often preventable complication of surgery and surgery-related anaesthesia, and increasingly prevalent. This article provides an overview on non-pharmacological preventive measures, divided into individualized and non-individualized measures. Non-individualized measures, such as the most minimally invasive surgical procedure, avoidance of unnecessary fasting before surgery, and the most tolerable anaesthesia are used to minimize the risk of POD in all patients. Based on the results of preoperative screenings for risk factors such as frailty or cognitive impairment, individualized measures may encompass prehabilitation, treatment of specific risk factors, operation room companionship or cognitive, motor, and sensory stimulation as well as social support. This article additionally lists several examples of best practice approaches already implemented in German-speaking countries and websites for further readings.

Precision Anaesthesia: Advancing Patient-Centered Precision Care Through Repetitive Assessment of PROMs with the Safe Brain Initiative Approach

This article aims to introduce the Safe Brain Initiative (SBI) approach, focusing on collecting and leveraging Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) to enhance patient-centred precision anaesthesia and prevent postoperative delirium (POD) and neurocognitive disorders (NCD). The SBI was implemented to systematically address the feedback gap in perioperative care by collecting and analysing real-world data. The initiative focuses on monitoring and preventing POD and NCD, providing effective anaesthesia care, assessing patient and team satisfaction, and evaluating environmental sustainability impact. Based on international guidelines, 18 core recommendations were established to address potential complications and challenges associated with anaesthesia. Preliminary results showed a notable reduction in POD and increased awareness among anaesthesia team members regarding PROMs. The SBI approach demonstrated significant benefits during emergency situations, such as the February 2023 earthquake in Turkey, by providing crucial support and comfort to victims requiring multiple surgical interventions. The SBI presents an innovative, cost-effective, and patient-centred approach to perioperative care. By integrating PROMs and systematic feedback mechanisms, the SBI aims to expedite the advancement of efficient, patient-centered precision perioperative care, improve patient outcomes, and elevate the quality of care. The initiative has shown promising results, and its adoption is growing globally. Collaboration among healthcare providers, researchers, and patients is crucial in shaping the future of anaesthesia practice and further improving patient outcomes. Turkish hospitals are encouraged to join the SBI to benefit from international collaborations and contribute to positive change in perioperative care standards. The SBI project significantly advances precision anaesthesia, emphasising personalised care and patient well-being.

Desflurane is risk factor for postoperative delirium in older patients' independent from intraoperative burst suppression duration.

Background: Postoperative Delirium (POD) is the most frequent neurocognitive complication after general anesthesia in older patients. The development of POD is associated with prolonged periods of burst suppression activity in the intraoperative electroencephalogram (EEG). The risk to present burst suppression activity depends not only on the age of the patient but is also more frequent during propofol anesthesia as compared to inhalative anesthesia. The aim of our study is to determine, if the risk to develop POD differs depending on the anesthetic agent given and if this correlates with a longer duration of intraoperative burst suppression. Methods: In this secondary analysis of the SuDoCo trail [ISRCTN 36437985] 1277 patients, older than 60 years undergoing general anesthesia were included. We preprocessed and analyzed the raw EEG files from each patient and evaluated the intraoperative burst suppression duration. In a logistic regression analysis, we assessed the impact of burst suppression duration and anesthetic agent used for maintenance on the risk to develop POD. Results: 18.7% of patients developed POD. Burst suppression duration was prolonged in POD patients (POD 27.5 min ± 21.3 min vs. NoPOD 21.4 ± 16.2 min, p < 0.001), for each minute of prolonged intraoperative burst suppression activity the risk to develop POD increased by 1.1% (OR 1.011, CI 95% 1.000-1.022, p = 0.046). Burst suppression duration was prolonged under propofol anesthesia as compared to sevoflurane and desflurane anesthesia (propofol 32.5 ± 20.3 min, sevoflurane 17.1 ± 12.6 min and desflurane 20.1 ± 16.0 min, p < 0.001). However, patients receiving desflurane anesthesia had a 1.8fold higher risk to develop POD, as compared to propofol anesthesia (OR 1.766, CI 95% 1.049-2.974, p = 0.032). Conclusion: We found a significantly increased risk to develop POD after desflurane anesthesia in older patients, even though burst suppression duration was shorter under desflurane anesthesia as compared to propofol anesthesia. Our finding might help to explain some discrepancies in studies analyzing the impact of burst suppression duration and EEG-guided anesthesia on the risk to develop POD.

Processed Electroencephalogram-Based Monitoring to Guide Sedation in Critically Ill Adult Patients: Recommendations from an International Expert Panel-Based Consensus.

BACKGROUND: The use of processed electroencephalography (pEEG) for depth of sedation (DOS) monitoring is increasing in anesthesia; however, how to use of this type of monitoring for critical care adult patients within the intensive care unit (ICU) remains unclear. METHODS: A multidisciplinary panel of international experts consisting of 21 clinicians involved in monitoring DOS in ICU patients was carefully selected on the basis of their expertise in neurocritical care and neuroanesthesiology. Panelists were assigned four domains (techniques for electroencephalography [EEG] monitoring, patient selection, use of the EEG monitors, competency, and training the principles of pEEG monitoring) from which a list of questions and statements was created to be addressed. A Delphi method based on iterative approach was used to produce the final statements. Statements were classified as highly appropriate or highly inappropriate (median rating ≥ 8), appropriate (median rating ≥ 7 but < 8), or uncertain (median rating < 7) and with a strong disagreement index (DI) (DI < 0.5) or weak DI (DI ≥ 0.5 but < 1) consensus. RESULTS: According to the statements evaluated by the panel, frontal pEEG (which includes a continuous colored density spectrogram) has been considered adequate to monitor the level of sedation (strong consensus), and it is recommended by the panel that all sedated patients (paralyzed or nonparalyzed) unfit for clinical evaluation would benefit from DOS monitoring (strong consensus) after a specific training program has been performed by the ICU staff. To cover the gap between knowledge/rational and routine application, some barriers must be broken, including lack of knowledge, validation for prolonged sedation, standardization between monitors based on different EEG analysis algorithms, and economic issues. CONCLUSIONS: Evidence on using DOS monitors in ICU is still scarce, and further research is required to better define the benefits of using pEEG. This consensus highlights that some critically ill patients may benefit from this type of neuromonitoring.

The Thai version of the nursing delirium screening scale-Thai: Adaptation and validation study in postoperative patients.

Background: The Nursing Delirium Screening Scale (Nu-DESC) is an effective instrument for assessing postoperative delirium (POD). This study translated the Nu-DESC into Thai ("Nu-DESC-Thai"), validated it, and compared its accuracy with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5 (DSM-5). Methods: The translation process followed the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics Outcome Research guidelines. Recruited participants were ≥ 70 years old, fluent in Thai, and scheduled for surgery. The exclusion criteria were cancellation or postponement of an operation, severe visual or auditory impairment, and patients with a Richmond Agitation Sedation Scale score of -4 or less before delirium assessment. Post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) nurses and residents on wards each used the Nu-DESC to assess delirium in 70 participants (i.e., 140 assessments) after the operation and after patient arrival at wards, respectively. Geriatricians confirmed the diagnoses using video observations and direct patient contact. Results: The participants' mean age was 76.5 ± 4.6 years. The sensitivity and specificity of the Nu-DESC-Thai at a threshold of ≥ 2 were 55% (95% CI, 31.5-76.9%) and 90.8% (84.2-95.3%), respectively, with an area under a receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.73. At a threshold of ≥ 1, the sensitivity and specificity were 85% (62.1-96.8%) and 71.7% (62.7-79.5%), respectively (AUC, 0.78). Adding 1 point for failing backward-digit counting (30-1) to the Nu-DESC-Thai and screening at a threshold of ≥ 2 increased its sensitivity to 85% (62.1-96.8%) with the same specificity of 90.8% (84.2-95.3%). Conclusion: The Nu-DESC-Thai showed good validity and reliability for postoperative use. Its sensitivity was inadequate at a cutoff ≥ 2. However, the sensitivity improved when the threshold was ≥ 1 or with the addition of backward counting to Nu-DESC-Thai and screening at a threshold of ≥ 2.

Machine-learning model predicting postoperative delirium in older patients using intraoperative frontal electroencephalographic signatures.

Objective: In older patients receiving general anesthesia, postoperative delirium (POD) is the most frequent form of cerebral dysfunction. Early identification of patients at higher risk to develop POD could provide the opportunity to adapt intraoperative and postoperative therapy. We, therefore, propose a machine learning approach to predict the risk of POD in elderly patients, using routine intraoperative electroencephalography (EEG) and clinical data that are readily available in the operating room. Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of the data of a single-center study at the Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Department of Anesthesiology [ISRCTN 36437985], including 1,277 patients, older than 60 years with planned surgery and general anesthesia. To deal with the class imbalance, we used balanced ensemble methods, specifically Bagging and Random Forests and as a performance measure, the area under the ROC curve (AUC-ROC). We trained our models including basic clinical parameters and intraoperative EEG features in particular classical spectral and burst suppression signatures as well as multi-band covariance matrices, which were classified, taking advantage of the geometry of a Riemannian manifold. The models were validated with 10 repeats of a 10-fold cross-validation. Results: Including EEG data in the classification resulted in a robust and reliable risk evaluation for POD. The clinical parameters alone achieved an AUC-ROC score of 0.75. Including EEG signatures improved the classification when the patients were grouped by anesthetic agents and evaluated separately for each group. The spectral features alone showed an AUC-ROC score of 0.66; the covariance features showed an AUC-ROC score of 0.68. The AUC-ROC scores of EEG features relative to patient data differed by anesthetic group. The best performance was reached, combining both the EEG features and the clinical parameters. Overall, the AUC-ROC score was 0.77, for patients receiving Propofol it was 0.78, for those receiving Sevoflurane it was 0.8 and for those receiving Desflurane 0.73. Applying the trained prediction model to an independent data set of a different clinical study confirmed these results for the combined classification, while the classifier on clinical parameters alone did not generalize. Conclusion: A machine learning approach combining intraoperative frontal EEG signatures with clinical parameters could be an easily applicable tool to early identify patients at risk to develop POD.

Presurgical cognitive impairment is associated with postoperative delirium and postoperative cognitive dysfunction.

BACKGROUND: Presurgical cognitive impairment (PreCI) is frequently seen in older age, but the influence on postoperative delirium (POD) and postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) remains unclear. The present study sought to determine the association between PreCI, POD and POCD with special focus to different PreCI domains. METHODS: We analyzed 934 patients with complete baseline neurocognitive assessment. PreCI was determined as cognitive performance of at least two standard deviation (SD) below the mean performance of non-surgical controls. POD was assessed according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 4 (DSM-4). POCD at three months follow-up was calculated by the reliable change index (RCI). Associations between PreCI and POD or POCD were assessed using multivariable logistic regression models adjusted for age, sex, randomization, ASA status, type of anesthesia, and type of surgery. RESULTS: PreCI was significantly associated with POD [OR 1.936 (95%CI 1.119 to 3.348); P=0.015] and POCD [OR 3.091 (95%CI 1.287 to 7.426); P=0.012]. Patients with coincident PreCI and POD were significantly more likely to develop POCD [OR 6.131 (95%CI 1.476 to 22.364); P=0.007]. Differentiation between no PreCI, amnestic and non-amnestic PreCI revealed a sole influence of amnestic PreCI on POD and POCD. CONCLUSIONS: Patients ≥ 60 years with PreCI were more likely to develop POD and POCD, respectively. The odds for POCD were highest in patients with PreCI whom also suffered from POD. Amnestic rather than non-amnestic PreCI might play a key role in the development of POD and POCD. These results warrant further pathophysiological investigations and demand preventive strategies.

C-reactive protein for risk prediction of post-operative delirium and post-operative neurocognitive disorder.

BACKGROUND: Post-operative delirium (POD) and post-operative neurocognitive disorder (NCD) are frequently seen in the elderly. Development of biomarkers for pre-operative risk prediction is of major relevance. As inflammation present before surgery might predispose to POD and post-operative NCD development, we aim to determine associations between pre-operative C-reactive protein (CRP) and the incidence of POD and post-operative NCD. METHODS: In this observational study, we analyzed 314 patients enrolled in the SuDoCo trial, who had a pre-operative CRP measurement the day before surgery. Primary outcomes were POD assessed according DSM-4 from day 1 until day 7 after surgery and post-operative NCD assessed 3 months after surgery. We conducted multivariable logistic regression analysis adjusted for age, sex, randomization, body mass index, MMSE, ASA status, infection/autoimmune disease/malignoma and types of surgery to determine associations between CRP with POD and post-operative NCD, respectively. RESULTS: Pre-operative CRP was independently associated with POD [OR 1.158 (95% CI 1.040, 1.291); P = .008]. Patients with CRP values ≥5 mg/dL had a 4.8-fold increased POD risk [OR 4.771 (95% CI 1.765, 12.899; P = .002)] compared to patients with lower CRP values. However, no association was seen between pre-operative CRP and post-operative NCD [OR 0.552 (95% CI 0.193, 1.581); P = .269]. CONCLUSIONS: Pre-operative CRP levels were independently associated with POD but not post-operative NCD after three months. Moreover, higher pre-operative CRP levels showed higher risk for POD. This strengthens the role of inflammation in the development of POD. Assessment of CRP before surgery might allow risk stratification of POD. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This study was registered with ISRCTN Register 36437985 on 02 March 2009.

Diabetes, but Not Hypertension and Obesity, Is Associated with Postoperative Cognitive Dysfunction.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Older people undergoing surgery are at risk of developing postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD), but little is known of risk factors predisposing patients to POCD. Our objective was to estimate the risk of POCD associated with exposure to preoperative diabetes, hypertension, and obesity. METHODS: Original data from 3 randomised controlled trials (OCTOPUS, DECS, SuDoCo) were obtained for secondary analysis on diabetes, hypertension, baseline blood pressure, obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m2), and BMI as risk factors for POCD in multiple logistic regression models. Risk estimates were pooled across the 3 studies. RESULTS: Analyses totalled 1,034 patients. POCD occurred in 5.2% of patients in DECS, in 9.4% in SuDoCo, and in 32.1% of patients in OCTOPUS. After adjustment for age, sex, surgery type, randomisation, obesity, and hypertension, diabetes was associated with a 1.84-fold increased risk of POCD (OR 1.84; 95% CI 1.14, 2.97; p = 0.01). Obesity, BMI, hypertension, and baseline blood pressure were each not associated with POCD in fully adjusted models (all p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Diabetes, but not obesity or hypertension, is associated with increased POCD risk. Consideration of diabetes status may be helpful for risk assessment of surgical patients.

Association of obesity, diabetes and hypertension with cognitive impairment in older age.

BACKGROUND: Age-related cognitive impairment is rising in prevalence but is not yet fully characterized in terms of its epidemiology. Here, we aimed to elucidate the role of obesity, diabetes and hypertension as candidate risk factors. METHODS: Original baseline data from 3 studies (OCTOPUS, DECS, SuDoCo) were obtained for secondary analysis of cross-sectional associations of diabetes, hypertension, blood pressure, obesity (body mass index [BMI] ≥30 kg/m2) and BMI with presence of cognitive impairment in log-binomial regression analyses. Cognitive impairment was defined as scoring more than 2 standard deviations below controls on at least one of 5-11 cognitive tests. Underweight participants (BMI<18.5 kg/m2) were excluded. Results were pooled across studies in fixed-effects inverse variance models. RESULTS: Analyses totaled 1545 participants with a mean age of 61 years (OCTOPUS) to 70 years (SuDoCo). Cognitive impairment was found in 29.0% of participants in DECS, 8.2% in SuDoCo and 45.6% in OCTOPUS. In pooled analyses, after adjustment for age, sex, diabetes and hypertension, obesity was associated with a 1.29-fold increased prevalence of cognitive impairment (risk ratio [RR] 1.29; 95% CI 0.98, 1.72). Each 1 kg/m2 increment in BMI was associated with 3% increased prevalence (RR 1.03; 95% CI 1.00, 1.06). None of the remaining risk factors were associated with impairment. CONCLUSION: Our results show that older people who are obese have higher prevalence of cognitive impairment compared with normal weight and overweight individuals, and independently of co-morbid hypertension or diabetes. Prospective studies are needed to investigate the temporal relationship of the association.

Acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase in cardiosurgical patients with postoperative delirium.

BACKGROUND: Patients in intensive care units (ICU) are often diagnosed with postoperative delirium; the duration of which has a relevant negative impact on various clinical outcomes. Recent research found a potentially important role of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) in delirium of critically ill patients on non-surgical ICU or in non-cardiac-surgery patients. We tested the hypothesis that AChE and BChE have an impact on patients after cardiac surgery with postoperative delirium. METHODS: After obtaining approval from the local ethics committee, this mechanistic study gathered data of all 217 patients included in a randomized controlled trial testing non-pharmacological modifications of care in the cardiac surgical ICU to reduce delirium. Delirium was assessed with the Confusion Assessment Method for the Intensive Care Unit (CAM-ICU) and the Nursing Delirium Screening Scale (Nu-DESC) twice a day for the first 3 days after surgery. Further outcome variables were somatic laboratory parameters and variables regarding surgery, anesthesia, and postsurgical recovery. 10 µl venous or arterial blood was drawn and AChE and BChE were determined with ChE check mobile from Securetec. RESULTS: Of 217 patients, 60 (27.6%) developed postsurgical delirium (POD). Patients with POD were older (p = 0.005), had anemia (p = 0.01), and worse kidney function (p = 0.006). Furthermore, these patients had lower intraoperative cerebral saturation (NIRS) (p < 0.001) and higher intraoperative need of catecholamines (p = 0.03). Delirious patients showed more inflammatory response (p < 0.001). AChE and BChE values were mainly inside the norm. Patients with values outside the norm did not have POD more often than others. Regarding AChE and BChE patients did not differ in having delirium or not (p > 0.10). CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative measurement of AChE and BChE did not discern between patients with and without POD. The effect of the cardiac surgical procedure on AChE and BChE remains unclear. Further studies with patients in cardiac surgery are needed to evaluate a possible combination of delirium and the cholinergic transmitter system. There might be possible interactions with AChE/BChE and blood products and the use of cardiopulmonary bypass, which should be investigated more intensively. TRIAL REGISTRATION: German Clinical Trials Register, DRKS00006217.