Postoperative liver injury after sevoflurane or propofol anesthesia in patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery: a retrospective cohort study.

Although sevoflurane is generally considered safe, reports suggest that sevoflurane may cause postoperative liver injury more frequently than previously believed. Therefore, we aimed to compare the incidence of clinically significant postoperative liver injury following non-cardiac surgery between patients who underwent sevoflurane anesthesia and propofol-based total intravenous anesthesia. We retrospectively reviewed adult surgical patients from January 2010 to September 2022 who underwent general anesthesia in our center using sevoflurane or propofol over 3 h. After 1:1 propensity score matching, the incidence of postoperative liver injury was compared between the two groups. Out of 58,300 patients reviewed, 44,345 patients were included in the analysis. After propensity score matching, 7767 patients were included in each group. The incidence of postoperative liver injury was 1.4% in the sevoflurane group, which was similar to that in the propofol group (1.6%; p = 0.432). Comparison of the severity of postoperative alanine aminotransferase elevation showed that the incidence of borderline and mild elevation was higher in the sevoflurane group, but there was no difference in the incidence of moderate and severe elevation. In conclusion, sevoflurane anesthesia over 3 h was not associated with a higher incidence of clinically significant postoperative liver injury compared to propofol anesthesia.

The association of withholding or continuing angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin 2 receptor blockers on acute kidney injury after non-cardiac surgery.

BACKGROUND: Withholding or continuing angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin 2 receptor blockers peri-operatively in non-cardiac surgery remains controversial as they may result in intra-operative hypotension and postoperative organ damage. METHODS: We included patients prescribed angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin 2 receptor blockers who underwent surgical procedures > 1 h duration under general or spinal anaesthesia from January 2012 to June 2022 in a single centre. We categorised patients by whether these drugs were withheld for 24 h before surgery. We evaluated the association of withholding these drugs before non-cardiac surgery with creatinine concentrations that increased ≥ 26.4 µmol.l-1 in the first 48 postoperative hours (acute kidney injury). We also analysed changes in creatinine concentrations and estimated glomerular filtration rates. RESULTS: Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin 2 receptor blockers were withheld in 24,285 of 32,933 (74%) patients and continued in 8648 (26%) patients. We used propensity scores for drug discontinuation to match 8631 patient pairs who did or did not continue these drugs: acute kidney injury was recorded for 1791 (21%) patients who continued these drugs vs. 1587 (18%) who did not (OR (95%CI) 1.16 (1.08-1.25), p < 0.001). Intra-operative hypotension was recorded for 3892 (45%) patients who continued drugs vs. 3373 (39%) patients who did not (OR (95%CI) 1.28 (1.21-1.36), p < 0.001). Continuing drugs was independently associated with a mean increase in creatinine of 2.2 µmol.l-1 (p < 0.001) and a mean decrease in estimated glomerular filtration rate of 1.4 ml.min.1.73 m-2 (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Continuing angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin 2 receptor blockers 24 h before non-cardiac surgery was associated with intra-operative hypotension and postoperative acute kidney injury.

Effect of continuing angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin II receptor blockers on the day of surgery on myocardial injury after non-cardiac surgery: A retrospective cohort study.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of continuing of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) or angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB) prescriptions 24 h before surgery on postoperative myocardial injury and blood pressure in patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery. DESIGN: A single-center, retrospective study. SETTING: Operating room and perioperative care area. PATIENTS: 42,432 patients who had been taking chronic ACEI/ARB underwent non-cardiac surgery from January 2012 to June 2022. INTERVENTIONS: Patients who discontinued ACEI/ARB 24 h before surgery (withheld group, n=31,055) and those who continued ACEI/ARB 24 h before surgery (continued group, n=11,377). MEASUREMENTS: Primary outcome was myocardial injury after non-cardiac surgery (MINS) within 7 days postoperatively. MINS was defined as an elevated postoperative cardiac troponin measurement above the 99th percentile of the upper reference limit with a rise/fall pattern. Perioperative blood pressure and clinical outcomes were secondary outcomes. MAIN RESULTS: Among 42,432 patients, MINS occurred in 2848 patients (6.7%) and was the all-cause of death within 30 days in 122 patients (0.3%). Incidence of MINS was significantly higher in the continued group than the withheld group (847/11,377 [7.4%] vs. 2001/31,055 [6.4%]; OR [95% CI] 1.17 [1.07-1.27]; P<0.001). After 1:1 propensity score matching, 11,373 patients were included in each group. There was still a significant difference for the occurrence of MINS between two groups in matched cohort (7.4% vs. 6.6%, OR [95% CI] 1.14 [1.03-1.26]; P=0.015). Time-average weight of mean arterial pressure <65 mmHg during surgery was significantly higher in the continued group (mean 0.11 vs. 0.09 [95% CI of mean difference] [0.01-0.03]; P<0.001). However, there was no significant difference in other clinical outcomes and mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Withholding ACEI/ARB before surgery was associated with a reduced risk of intraoperative hypotension and postoperative myocardial injury, but it did not affect overall clinical outcomes in patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery.

A randomized controlled trial of propofol-remifentanil total intravenous anesthesia and sevoflurane-fentanyl anesthesia on early postoperative fatigue in patients undergoing laparoscopic colorectal surgery.

PURPOSE: Even after uncomplicated surgery, postoperative fatigue prevalence has been reported to be 30-80% for various surgeries. We evaluated postoperative fatigue according to anesthetic technique in patients who underwent colorectal surgery. METHODS: One hundred thirty patients who underwent colorectal surgery were randomly assigned to either propofol-remifentanil total intravenous anesthesia (propofol-remifentanil group, n = 65) or sevoflurane-fentanyl anesthesia (sevoflurane-fentanyl group, n = 65). The primary outcome was the prevalence of postoperative fatigue, as defined by the Chalder Fatigue Questionnaire (total score ≥ 16), at 24 h postoperatively. Secondary outcomes were early postoperative complications during hospitalization and laboratory examination. RESULTS: The final analyses included 127 patients. The prevalence of postoperative fatigue on the 1st postoperative day was lower in the propofol-remifentanil group than the sevoflurane-fentanyl group: 56.3% (36/64) in the propofol-remifentanil group and 73.0% (46/63) in the sevoflurane-fentanyl group (relative risk [RR] = 0.77, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.59-1.00; P = 0.048). However, there was no difference between the two groups in postoperative fatigue at postoperative day 3. Other postoperative outcomes including the severity of pain and the incidence of nausea/vomiting were not different between the two groups, but postoperative atelectasis on chest X-ray was higher in the sevoflurane-fentanyl group (2/64 [3.1%] vs. 9/63 [14.3%], P = 0.025). C-reactive protein change from preoperative to postoperative day 1 and 5 was significantly lower in the propofol-remifentanil group (P = 0.044). CONCLUSION: Propofol-remifentanil total intravenous anesthesia was associated with reduced postoperative fatigue at the 1st postoperative day compared with sevoflurane-fentanyl anesthesia. Clinical trial The Korean Clinical Research Registry (study identifier: KCT0006917, principal investigator's name: MiHye Park, date of registration: January 12, 2022).