Postoperative analgesia after surgical repair of distal radius fracture: a randomized comparison between distal peripheral nerve blockade and surgical site infiltration.

BACKGROUND: Pain following open reduction and internal fixation of distal radius fracture (DRF) can be significant. This study compared the intensity of pain up to 48 hours after volar plating for DRF, associated to either an ultrasound guided distal nerve block (DNB) or surgical site infiltration (SSI). METHODS: In this prospective single blind randomized study, 72 patients scheduled for DRF surgery under 1.5% lidocaine axillary block were allocated to receive, at the end of surgery, either an ultrasound-guided median and radial nerves block with ropivacaine 0.375% (DNB) performed by the anesthesiologist or a SSI with the same drug regimen, performed by the surgeon. Primary outcome was the duration between analgesic technique (H0) and pain reappearance (Numerical Rating Scale (NRS 0-10)>3). Secondary outcomes were the quality of analgesia, the quality of sleep, the magnitude of motor blockade, and the patient satisfaction. The study was built on a statistical hypothesis of equivalence. RESULTS: Fifty-nine patients were included in the final per-protocol analysis (DNB=30, SSI=29). Time to reach NRS>3 was (in median [95%CI]) 267 min [155;727] and 164 min [120;181] respectively after DNB and SSI (difference=103 min [-22;594] - rejection of equivalence hypothesis). Pain intensity throughout the 48 hours, quality of sleep, opiate consumption, motor blockade and patient satisfaction was not significantly different between groups. CONCLUSIONS: Although DNB provides a longer analgesia than SSI, both techniques gave comparable level of pain control during the first 48 hours after surgery, without any difference in the incidence of side effects or patient satisfaction.

Immediate postoperative pain does not predict pain at home after ambulatory single-port sleeve gastrectomy.

PURPOSE: Single-port sleeve gastrectomy (SPSG) is increasingly performed in an ambulatory setting. Pain intensity when returning home remains a problem. The challenge is to be able to predict the evolution of postoperative pain (POP) at home by using parameters collected during the hospital stay. This study aimed to investigate whether immediate POP in the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) can predict pain intensity 24 h after surgery. METHODS: Single-center retrospective study in patients with obesity who underwent ambulatory SPSG. POP and opiate requirements during PACU stay were registered. Patients were followed up at home during the first 4 postoperative days. The primary outcome was the correlation between opiate requirements in the PACU and Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) at home 24 h after surgery. Secondly, logistic regression was used to identify risk factors for moderate/intense pain 24 h after surgery. RESULTS: Ninety-four patients were included during the study period. Twenty-two patients had NRS > 3/10 24 h after surgery. No correlation was found between the total dose of morphine in the PACU and pain intensity 24 h after surgery (r2 = - 0.07; P = 0.49). No predictive factor for moderate/intense pain 24 h after surgery was found. CONCLUSION: No correlation was found between opiate requirements in the PACU and pain at home 24 h after SPSG. Based on these results, it does not seem possible to predict intense pain at home from pain profile and morphine requirement during the immediate postoperative period.

Cognitive status of patients judged fit for discharge from the post-anaesthesia care unit after general anaesthesia: a randomized comparison between desflurane and propofol.

BACKGROUND: The Aldrete's score is used to determine when a patient can safely leave the Post-Anaesthesia Care Unit (PACU) and be transferred to the surgical ward. The Aldrete score is based on the evaluation of vital signs and consciousness. Cognitive functions according to the anaesthetic strategy at the time the patient is judged fit for discharge from the PACU (Aldrete's score ≥ 9) have not been previously studied. The aim of this trial was to assess the cognitive status of inpatients emerging either from desflurane or propofol anaesthesia, at the time of PACU discharge (Aldrete score ≥ 9). METHODS: Sixty adult patients scheduled for hip or knee arthroplasty under general anaesthesia were randomly allocated to receive either desflurane or propofol anaesthesia. Patients were evaluated the day before surgery using Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST), Stroop Color Test and Verbal Learning Test. After surgery, the Aldrete score was checked every 5 min until reaching a score ≥ 9. At this time, the same battery of cognitive tests was applied. Each test was evaluated separately. Cognitive status was reported using a combined Z score pooling together the results of all 3 cognitive tests. RESULTS: Among the 3 tests, only DSST was significantly reduced at Aldrete Score ≥ 9 in the Desflurane group. Combined Z-scores at Aldrete Score ≥ 9 were (in medians [interquartils]): - 0.2 [- 1.2;+ 0.6] and - 0.4 [- 1.1;+ 0.4] for desflurane and propofol groups respectively (P = 0.62). Cognitive dysfunction at Aldrete score ≥ 9 was observed in 3 patients in the Propofol group and in 2 patients in the Desflurane group) (P = 0.93). CONCLUSION: No difference was observed in cognitive status at Aldrete score ≥ 9 between desflurane and propofol anaesthesia. Although approximately 10% of patients still had cognitive dysfunctions, an Aldrete score ≥ 9 was associated with satisfactory cognitive function recovery in the majority of the patients after lower limb arthroplasty surgery under general anaesthesia. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Clinical Trials identifier NTC02036736 .

Unplanned admission after ambulatory anaesthesia in France: analysis of a database of 36,584 patients.

BACKGROUND: Unplanned admission (UA) after ambulatory procedures is an unexpected event that has organisational and financial impacts. This study was undertaken to determine the current rate of UA in France and to evaluate the factors associated with the occurrence of this event. METHOD: This is a retrospective analysis of a database of 36,584 patients issued from a private hospital in France. This study received an IRB approval. All of the patients that received ambulatory anaesthesia between April 2015 and June 2017 were included in this database. RESULTS: The overall rate of UA was 1.8% (95%CI: 1.3-2.3]. Hospitalisation after endoscopic procedures (gastrointestinal endoscopy and bronchial fibroscopy) was 1.1% (95%CI: 0.3-1.9), whereas it was 2.5% (95%CI: 1.8-3.2) after surgical procedures (p < 0.01). Organisational concerns, medical reason and surgical complications accounted respectively for one third of the hospitalisations. Pain was liable in 13% of cases, whereas PONV, residual sedation and urinary retention accounted respectively for 6.9%, 2.8% and 2.6% of cases. In a multivariate analysis, age > 60 years, ASA status > 2, general anaesthesia and the type of the procedures were identified risk factors. CONCLUSIONS: In this large cohort of ambulatory patients, the rate of UA remains significant. This is probably related, at least partly, to more invasive procedures scheduled in ambulatory setting. However, organisational problems occurred still frequently. Some factors appear to be easily improvable by appropriate preoperative information, better operating theatre scheduling and better analgesic strategy.

Clinical Interest and Economic Impact of Preoperative SMS Reminders before Ambulatory Surgery: A Propensity Score Analysis.

Patient contact by telephone the day before ambulatory surgery is considered as a best practice. The Short Message Service (SMS) could be a suitable alternative. The objective of this prospective study was to evaluate the interest of preoperative instruction (PI) reminders by SMS compared to telephone calls. This was a prospective single center before-and-after study. Patients scheduled in ambulatory surgery were included during 2 consecutive periods of 10 weeks. The "Call" group received a telephone call for preoperative instructions (PI) and the "SMS" group received an automated protocol SMS reminder. The primary endpoint was patient compliance with PI and time of convocation. The two populations were compared with a non-inferiority hypothesis and the impact of the contact modality on compliance with the PI was assessed using a propensity score. The analysis concerned 301 patients in the Call group and 298 in the SMS group. The absence of dysfunction was observed in 75% of patients in the SMS group compared with 61% in the Call group (Risk difference: 14% [95%CI: 7-21]). The use of SMS was associated with a significant improvement in compliance with the PI (Odds ratio: 1.90 [1.48-2.42]; p < 0.0001). Patient satisfaction was similar regardless of the method of PI reminders. The automation of preoperative SMS reminders is associated with a better respect of the PI compared to the conventional calling method. This PI reminder method satisfies the majority of patients and may have a favorable financial impact.

Operation and organisation of ambulatory surgery in France. Results of a nationwide survey; The OPERA study.

Operation and organisation of ambulatory surgical activity in France remains largely undocumented. This nationwide observational prospective survey, carried out between December 2013 and December 2014, was undertaken to characterise the organisational processes of ambulatory surgery in France. Three hundred centres were randomly chosen from a list of 891 hospitals practicing ambulatory surgery, with stratification according to the type of facility (public general hospital, university hospital, private hospital) and region. An email was sent to the board of the randomly chosen facilities with an attached information letter explaining how the survey worked. Hospitals who did not reply to this email were contacted by phone. Among the 206 hospitals that answered the survey, 92 were private, 78 were public and 36 were university hospitals. Median accommodation capacities of ambulatory units were 8 beds, mostly distinct from conventional surgical ward. Patient pathways dedicated to ambulatory surgery appear as the current predominant practice. 77% of the French ambulatory units have a head nurse in charge of logistics and coordination. Several items still have to be improved, such as the adherence to modern fasting rules and the unnecessary use of stretcher to move the patient. Objective discharge score is used in 77% of ambulatory units. This survey highlights the implementation of some positive organisational parameters corresponding to common good practices recommendations. In contrast, several other recommendations are still insufficiently applied and may hamper the development of safe ambulatory surgery. This brings up new challenges for health regulatory boards, hospitals and ambulatory units managers.

Organizational aspects to optimize patient's ambulatory pathway.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Successful ambulatory care implementation should combine both medical and organizational features. These two components are closely interrelated. Only optimal organization, part of a quality management program, will allow us to perform safe medical procedures and provide good patient satisfaction. This review is intended to update organizational concepts that could improve ambulatory surgery center efficiency. RECENT FINDINGS: Current organizational concepts are based on the implementation of a dedicated pathway that could be divided into sequential steps, wherein the concepts of flow time and throughput should be applied. Wasted times have to be evaluated and suppressed, so patients have to spend only the minimum required time at each step. A 'forward pathway' would allow maintaining unidirectional patients' flow to avoid any blockade and to build sequential surgical program planning. These processes are easier to implement in dedicated facilities, managed by a dedicated staff, after extensive patient preoperative information, and with the use of numeric information systems. SUMMARY: Organizational feature in ambulatory surgery center is a major determinant of patient flow, activity, resource utilization, safety, and patient satisfaction. Most of these basic principles may contribute to improve the quality of care that can also be of benefit to conventional surgical activity.

Accuracy of patient's turnover time prediction using RFID technology in an academic ambulatory surgery center.

Patients flow in outpatient surgical unit is a major issue with regards to resource utilization, overall case load and patient satisfaction. An electronic Radio Frequency Identification Device (RFID) was used to document the overall time spent by the patients between their admission and discharge from the unit. The objective of this study was to evaluate how a RFID-based data collection system could provide an accurate prediction of the actual time for the patient to be discharged from the ambulatory surgical unit after surgery. This is an observational prospective evaluation carried out in an academic ambulatory surgery center (ASC). Data on length of stay at each step of the patient care, from admission to discharge, were recorded by a RFID device and analyzed according to the type of surgical procedure, the surgeon and the anesthetic technique. Based on these initial data (n = 1520), patients were scheduled in a sequential manner according to the expected duration of the previous case. The primary endpoint was the difference between actual and predicted time of discharge from the unit. A total of 414 consecutive patients were prospectively evaluated. One hundred seventy four patients (42%) were discharged at the predicted time ± 30 min. Only 24% were discharged behind predicted schedule. Using an automatic record of patient's length of stay would allow an accurate prediction of the discharge time according to the type of surgery, the surgeon and the anesthetic procedure.