The Impact of Initial Postoperative Destination on Unplanned Critical Care Admissions After Lung Resection.

OBJECTIVES: Despite an increasing proportion of patients undergoing lung resection being managed postoperatively in a ward-based environment, studies analyzing the impact of initial postoperative destination (IPD) on perioperative outcomes and unplanned critical care admission (UCCA) are lacking. DESIGN: A single-center retrospective review. SETTING: A cardiothoracic surgery center in the Northwest of England. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 3,841 patients between 2012 and 2018. INTERVENTIONS: All patients underwent lung resection. Patients were classified as either IPD ward or IPD critical care. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Outcomes assessed included in-hospital and 90-day mortality and UCCA. Differences in mortality rates between groups were assessed using the chi-square test. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to identify variables independently associated with 90-day mortality and UCCA. In total, 23.8% (n = 913) of patients went to critical care as their IPD. Overall in-hospital mortality was 1.6% (n = 62), and 90-day mortality was 2.9% (n = 112). The rate of UCCA was 10.5% (n = 404) and was significantly higher for IPD ward patients compared to IPD critical care patients (11.9% v 6.2%, p < 0.001). The 90-day mortality rates after UCCA were 5.2% (IPD ward) and 19.3% (IPD critical care) (p < 0.001). Advanced age, worse pulmonary function, IPD ward, and timing of surgery were all independently associated with UCCA. CONCLUSIONS: Most patients undergoing lung resection can be managed safely postoperatively in a ward-based environment. Short-term mortality is higher after UCCA, with patients who experience readmission to critical care at the highest risk of death. Patients should receive additional monitoring immediately following discharge from critical care.

Predicting Readmission to Intensive Care After Cardiac Surgery Within Index Hospitalization: A Systematic Review.

Readmission to the cardiac intensive care unit after cardiac surgery has significant implications for both patients and healthcare providers. Identifying patients at risk of readmission potentially could improve outcomes. The objective of this systematic review was to identify risk factors and clinical prediction models for readmission within a single hospitalization to intensive care after cardiac surgery. PubMed, MEDLINE, and EMBASE databases were searched to identify candidate articles. Only studies that used multivariate analyses to identify independent predictors were included. There were 25 studies and five risk prediction models identified. The overall rate of readmission pooled across the included studies was 4.9%. In all 25 studies, in-hospital mortality and duration of hospital stay were higher in patients who experienced readmission. Recurring predictors for readmission were preoperative renal failure, age >70, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, preoperative left ventricular ejection fraction <30%, type and urgency of surgery, prolonged cardiopulmonary bypass time, prolonged postoperative ventilation, postoperative anemia, and neurologic dysfunction. The majority of readmissions occurred due to respiratory and cardiac complications. Four models were identified for predicting readmission, with one external validation study. As all models developed to date had limitations, further work on larger datasets is required to develop clinically useful models to identify patients at risk of readmission to the cardiac intensive care unit after cardiac surgery.

Preoperative rehabilitation for thoracic surgery.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Lung resection provides the best outcome for patients with early stage lung cancer. However, lung cancer surgery carries a significant risk of perioperative complications. Patient risk may be reduced by addressing modifiable risk factors in the preoperative period. We review how this can be achieved through preoperative rehabilitation pathways. RECENT FINDINGS: Cardiorespiratory fitness is an independent predictor of survival for nonsmall cell cancer. Preoperative exercise programmes may improve cardiorespiratory reserve and reduce perioperative complications. Additional benefits may be achieved through interventions such as smoking cessation programmes, correction of anaemia, improvement of nutritional status and improved oral hygiene. These interventions may also have the additional benefit of enabling high-risk patients previously deemed unsuitable for surgery to be optimized to such a degree that they can undergo surgery. These interventions will achieve maximal benefit when delivered early in lung cancer pathways; this requires close collaboration amongst multidisciplinary teams. SUMMARY: Lung cancer surgery carries significant risk of postoperative pulmonary complications. Through integrating prehabilitation interventions into lung cancer pathways, there are opportunities to improve long-term outcomes for patients.