RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Perioperative cognitive dysfunction (PCD) is a very prevalent clinical syndrome due to the progressive aging of the surgical population.The aim of our study is to evaluate the clinical practice of Spanish anesthesiologists surveyed regarding this entity. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Prospective online survey conducted by the Neurosciences Section and distributed by SEDAR. RESULTS: 544 responses were obtained, with a participation rate of 17%. 54.4% of respondents never make a preoperative assessment of cognitive impairment, only 7.5% always do it. 79.6% lack an intraoperative management protocol for the patient at risk of PCD. In the anesthetic planning, only 23.3% of the patients was kept in mind. Eighty-nine percent considered regional anesthesia with or without sedation preferable to general anesthesia for the prevention of PCD. 88.8% considered benzodiazepines to present a high risk of PCD. 71.7% considered that anesthetic depth monitoring could prevent postoperative cognitive deficit. Routine evaluation of postoperative delirium is low, only 14%. More than 80% recognize that PCD is underdiagnosed. CONCLUSIONS: Among Spanish anesthesiologists surveyed, PCD is still a little known and underappreciated entity. It is necessary to raise awareness of the need to detect risk factors for PCD, as well as postoperative assessment and diagnosis. Therefore, the development of guidelines and protocols and the implementation of continuing education programs in which anesthesiologists should be key members of multidisciplinary teams in charge of perioperative care are suggested.
RESUMEN
A detailed analysis of the literature on consciousness and cognition mechanisms based on the neural networks theory is presented. The immune and inflammatory response to the anesthetic-surgical procedure induces modulation of neuronal plasticity by influencing higher cognitive functions. Anesthetic drugs can cause unconsciousness, producing a functional disruption of cortical and thalamic cortical integration complex. The external and internal perceptions are processed through an intricate network of neural connections, involving the higher nervous activity centers, especially the cerebral cortex. This requires an integrated model, formed by neural networks and their interactions with highly specialized regions, through large-scale networks, which are distributed throughout the brain collecting information flow of these perceptions. Functional and effective connectivity between large-scale networks, are essential for consciousness, unconsciousness and cognition. It is what is called the "human connectome" or map neural networks.