The significance of S100ß protein on postoperative cognitive dysfunction in patients who underwent single valve replacement surgery under general anesthesia.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the effect of S100ß protein on postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) in patients who underwent single valve replacement surgery. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) were applied to evaluate 178 patients who underwent single valve replacement surgery under general anesthesia from June 2014 to December 2015. Patients were assessed 1 day before surgery and on postoperative days 2 and 9. Thirty-two patients were identified as having postoperative cognitive dysfunction (the POCD group), while 146 cases did not experience POCD (the control group). A total of 155 healthy adult volunteers from the Medical Center were simultaneously chosen (healthy comparison group). Serum S100ß levels from the three groups of patients were measured by ELISA. RESULTS: In the POCD group, serum S100ß levels were significantly higher than those of the control group and healthy comparison group (p < 0.05). The postoperative length of stay in the hospital for patients in the POCD group was significantly increased (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The expression of serum S100ß in patients with POCD was significantly increased. S100ß may represent a potential target for the diagnosis and treatment of cognitive dysfunction after cardiac surgery under general anesthesia.