Unintentional guideline deviations in hospitalized patients with two or more antithrombotic agents: an intervention study.

PURPOSE: Treatment schedules for antithrombotic therapy are complex, and there is a risk of inappropriate prescribing or continuation of antithrombotic therapy beyond the intended period of time. The primary aim of this study was to determine the frequency of unintentional guideline deviations in hospitalized patients. Secondary aims were to determine whether the frequency of unintentional guideline deviations decreased after intervention by a pharmacist, to determine the acceptance rate of the interventions and to determine the type of interventions. METHODS: We performed a non-controlled prospective intervention study in three teaching hospitals in the Netherlands. We examined whether hospitalized patients who used the combination of an anticoagulant plus at least one other antithrombotic agent had an unintentional guideline deviation. In these cases, the hospital pharmacist contacted the physician to assess whether this deviation was intentional. If the deviation was unintentional, a recommendation was provided how to adjust the antithrombotic regimen according to guideline recommendations. RESULTS: Of the 988 included patients, 407 patients had an unintentional guideline deviation (41.2%). After intervention, this was reduced to 22 patients (2.2%) (p < 0.001). The acceptance rate of the interventions was 96.6%. The most frequently performed interventions were discontinuation of an low molecular weight heparin in combination with a direct oral anticoagulant and discontinuation of an antiplatelet agent when there was no indication for the combination of an antiplatelet agent and an anticoagulant. CONCLUSION: A significant number of hospitalized patients who used an anticoagulant plus one other antithrombotic agent had an unintentional guideline deviation. Intervention by a pharmacist decreased unintentional guideline deviations.

No effect of double nerve block of the lateral cutaneous nerve and subcostal nerves in total hip arthroplasty.

Background and purpose - The use of local infiltration anesthesia (LIA) has become one of the cornerstones of rapid recovery protocols in total knee arthroplasty patients during the past decade. In total hip arthroplasty (THR), however, the study results are more variable and LIA has therefore not yet been generally accepted. There is no consensus on which structure should be infiltrated and the cutaneous nerves are generally neglected. Hence, we hypothesized a pain-reducing effect of specifically blocking these nerves. Patients and methods - We performed a single-center randomized placebo-controlled trial in 162 subjects to evaluate the infiltration of the lateral cutaneous femoral and subcostal nerve with ropivacaine in patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty via a straight lateral approach. The primary endpoint was pain at rest after 24 hours. Patients were followed up to 6 weeks postoperatively. Results - After correction for multiple testing, no statistically significant differences in pain scores were found between the ropivacaine compared with the placebo group after surgery. In addition, no differences were observed in the use of escape pain medication, complications, and the length of hospital stay. Interpretation - We found no clinically meaningful differences in pain scores between placebo and ropivacaine patients in the postoperative period after THA performed via a straight lateral approach under spinal anesthesia and a multimodal pain regimen. Moreover, our primary endpoint, pain reduction after 24 hours, was not met. Further research should focus on the composition and volume of the LIA suspension, the optimal localization of the infiltration, and should be evaluated for every surgical approach separately.