Abstract in English:

Abstract Background: Most previous reports have used questionnaires to investigate patient satisfaction regarding anesthesia-related care. We retrospectively investigated the dissatisfaction rate for anesthesia and the contributing factors for it using a questionnaire including anesthesia-related adverse events and a simplified patient satisfaction scale. Methods: This is a retrospective review of an institutional registry containing 21,606 anesthesia cases. We conducted multivariate logistic analysis in 9,429 patients using the incidence of dissatisfaction as a dependent variable and other covariates, including items of anesthesia registry and a postoperative questionnaire, as independent variables to investigate factors significantly associated with the risk of dissatisfaction with anesthesia. Results: In the study population, 549 patients rated the anesthesia service as dissatisfactory. Multivariate analysis identified the preoperative presence of coexisting disease [odds ratio (OR), 1.29; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.05–1.59], combination of regional anesthesia (OR, 1.44; 95% CI, 1.10–1.88), self-reported awareness (OR, 1.99; 95% CI, 1.29–3.06), postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) (OR, 1.54; 95% CI, 1.25–1.90), occurrence of nightmares (OR, 1.96; 95% CI, 1.52–2.53), and the number of days taken to visit a postoperative anesthesia consultation clinic (OR, 1.01; 95% CI, 1.00–1.02) to be independently associated with dissatisfaction with anesthesia service. Conclusions: Patients with coexisting disease, undergoing a combination of regional anesthesia, with self-reported awareness, experiencing PONV, suffering from nightmares, and who took longer to visit a postoperative anesthesia consultation clinic tended to rate our anesthesia service as dissatisfactory. Although the exact reasons for the factors contributing to dissatisfaction are unknown, this study suggests that there is room to improve our service.

Abstract in English:

Abstract Background: Publication speed is one of the critical factors affecting authors’ preference to a journal for manuscript submission. The publication time of submitted manuscripts varies across journals and specialty. Objectives: Several bibliometric studies in various fields of medicine, except in anesthesiology, have addressed the issue of publication speed and factors that influence the publication speed. We aimed to identify factors affecting the publication speed of indexed anesthesiology journals. Method: Overall, 25 anesthesiology journals indexed in MEDLINE database were retrospectively analyzed for the time required during different stages of publication process. A total of 12 original articles published in the year 2018 were randomly selected from each journal based on the number of issues. Time periods from submission to acceptance and from submission to publication were noted, and their association with impact factor (IF), advanced online publication (AOP), and article processing charges (APCs) were evaluated. Results: The median time from submission to acceptance and from submission to publication for the selected journals were 120 (IQR [83-167]) days and 186 (IQR [126-246]) days, respectively. Publication speed was not found to have any correlation with IF and APC. However, journals with AOP required significantly lesser time for publication than those without AOP 138.5 and 240 days, respectively, (p = 0.011). Moreover, the IF of journals with AOP was significantly higher than that of journals without AOP (p = 0.002). Conclusion: The study provides an overview of total time required for peer review, acceptance, and publication in indexed anesthesiology journals. Researchers should focus on journals with AOP for expediting the publication process and avoiding publication delays.

Abstract in English:

Abstract Background: The first national survey to ascertain the prevalence, structure, and functioning of the APS in Canadian university affiliated hospitals was conducted in 1991. This is a follow-up survey to assess the current status of the APS in Canada. Methods: We requested completion of a 26-question survey from lead personnel of the APS teams or Anesthesia departments of Canadian teaching hospitals. Results: Among the 32 centers that were contacted, 21 (65.6%) responded. Of these respondents, 18 (85.7%) indicated that they have a structured APS (72.22% adults, 5.56% pediatrics, 22.22% mixed). Among the 18 centers with an APS, 16 of the services are led by an anesthesiologist. Eight centers (44.44%) have a regional anesthesia group, of which five (27.75%) have a regional anesthesia group that is distinct from the APS team. Nine centers (50%) offer ambulatory nerve catheter analgesia after discharge home. Fifteen centers (83.33%) use standardized order sets, and 13 centers (72.22%) use an electronic record for APS. More than 50% of the centers use intravenous lidocaine and ketamine as a part of their multimodal analgesia. Conclusion: Most Canadian teaching hospitals do have a functioning APS. This survey has the potential to generate research questions about the availability of standardized and advanced acute pain management in Canada’s teaching hospitals.

Abstract in English:

Abstract Background: SARS-CoV-2 virus changed society’s behaviour. Population was advised to reduce unnecessary heath care use to accommodate urgent cases and daily increase of COVID-19 patients. Health care facilities faced huge challenges, having to readjust their response to preserve good quality of care. In Portugal, a significant reduction in the number of admissions to the Emergency Department (ED) was reported all over the country, however the impact on the dynamics of undeferrable surgery remains to be reported. This study compares the volume and characteristics of urgent/emergency surgery during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic with the homologous period in 2019, chronologically illustrating the national evolution of new COVID-19 cases and the social and hospital containment response. Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted in a tertiary hospital center located in the most affected region by COVID-19 in Portugal. Medical records of patients who underwent urgent/emergency surgery between March 1st and May 2nd of both 2020 and 2019 were examined and the volume of surgeries were compared. Also, daily national updates from Portuguese Directorate-General for Health were analysed. Results: During the COVID-19 pandemic approximately 30% less patients underwent urgent/emergency surgery (99%CI = 0.18–0.61, p < 0.001). Waiting time for surgery showed no difference between both years (p = 0.068), but patients who did surgery during the 2020 pandemic had higher mortality rates than the ones who did it in 2019 (11.4% in 2020 and 5.9% in 2019, p = 0.001). Reduction in surgery volume was correlated with the increasing number of infected cases nationally. Conclusion: This study demonstrates decreasing numbers of urgent/emergency procedures during the COVID-19 pandemic that may be justified by the national growth number of infected cases. Preoperative mass screening strategy was implemented without compromising the efficiency of surgical service, but patients’ mortality was higher. The importance of visiting the ED during COVID-19 pandemic for serious cases that cannot be managed in other settings should be highlighted.

Abstract in English:

Abstract Background and objectives: The aim of this prospective, multi-centered and multi-arm parallel randomized trial was to test the hypothesis that modified sitting positions including hamstring stretch position (HSP) and squatting position (SP) would reduce needle - bone contact events and increase the success rate of combined spinal - epidural anesthesia (CSEA) compared to traditional sitting position (TSP) in patients undergoing total knee or hip arthroplasty. Patients and methods: Three hundred and sixty American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) I-III patients, aged between 45-85 years were randomly allocated to one of three groups using computer-generated simple randomization: group TSP (n = 120), group HSP (n = 120), and group SP (n = 120). Primary outcome measures were the number of needle-bone contact and success rates. Secondary outcome measure was the ease of interspinous space identification. Results: Seven patients in group SP and four of HSP could not tolerate their position and were excluded. Number of needle-bone contact, success rates, and grade of interspinous space identification were similar between groups (p = 1.000). Independent of positioning, the success rates were higher in patients whose interspinous space was graded as easy compared to difficult or impossible (p < 0.001). Success rates reduced, interspinous space identification became more challenging, and number of needle – bone contact increased as patient’s body mass index (BMI) increased (p < 0.001). Conclusion: SP and HSP may be used as alternatives to the TSP. BMI and ease of interspinous space identification may be considered important determinants for CSEA success.

Abstract in English:

Abstract Introduction: Patient safety is a serious public health with serious implications on morbidity, mortality, and quality of life of patients, in addition to negatively affecting the public image of healthcare institutions and professionals. It requires further investigation, especially in specialties lacking published data, such as endoscopy. Objective: To analyze patient safety incidents reported in a gastrointestinal endoscopy unit of a tertiary hospital in southern Brazil. Methods: This retrospective, cross-sectional study quantitatively described patient safety incidents related to endoscopic procedures. The sample consisted of reports of incidents that occurred from 2015 to 2017. The data were descriptively analysed, and the study was approved by the relevant research ethics committee. Results: Overall, 42,863 endoscopic procedures were performed and 167 reports were submitted in the period, accounting for a prevalence of incidents of 0.38%. Most incidents did not result in unnecessary harm to patients (76.6%). The most prevalent incidents were those related to patient identification, followed by those related to pathology exams, exam reports, gastrointestinal perforations, skin lesions, falls and medication errors. The rate of adverse events (harm to patient) in patients undergoing any endoscopic procedure was 0.06%. Conclusions: The incidence of unnecessary harm (adverse event) associated with any endoscopic procedure was relatively low in this study. However, the identification of reported incidents is crucial for evaluating and improving the quality of care provided to patients.

Abstract in English:

Abstract Background: Difficult airway is a clinical situation in which a trained anesthesiologist experiences trouble with facemask ventilation and/or laryngoscopy and/or intubation. Poor identification of at-risk patients has been identified as one of the causes of difficult airway management. Objectives: We aimed to review the literature regarding the use of wristbands to identify adult patients with known or predicted difficult airway in hospitals. Methods: We searched Web of Science (WoS), Scopus, MEDLINE and OVID following the stages described by the PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). We used a combination of MeSH terms and non-controlled vocabulary regarding the use of difficult airway wristbands in adults. Three researchers independently reviewed the full texts and selected the papers to be included based on the inclusion criteria. Results: Our search generated 334 articles after removing duplicates. After reviewing full text articles, only seven studies were included. Here we found that most were from the United States, in which the authors report the use of in-patients’ wristbands in adults. According to the authors, the use of wristbands is being implemented as a measure of improved quality and safety of in-patients with difficult airway either known or suspected. Conclusions: The identification with wristbands of a difficult airway at an appropriate time is an identification strategy can have a low cost but a high impact on morbidity. It is pertinent to develop a methodology such as the use of wristbands, that allows a good classification and identification of patients with difficult airway in hospitals from Latin America.

Abstract in English:

Abstract The first anesthetic machines appeared following their public demonstration by Morton in 1846. These initial devices were simple inhalers based on the evaporation of the anesthetic agent. Their main problem was the loss of effectiveness with cooling. More complex inhalers were subsequently developed, in which the main difference was the possibility to provide more than one agent. Moreover, the concentration of the inhaled anesthetic was regulated for greater efficiency. At the beginning of the twentieth century, gas machines emerged, allowing the application of an anesthetic flow independent of the patient’s inspiratory effort. These machines incorporated technological advances such as flow meters, carbon dioxide absorption systems and fine adjustment vaporizers. In this period, in the field of thoracic surgery, intraoperative artificial ventilation began to be employed, which helped overcome the problem of pneumothorax associated with open pleura by applying positive pressure. From the 1930s, the gas machines were fitted with a ventilator, and by the 1950s this had become a basic component of the anesthesia system. Later still, in the 1980s, alarm and monitoring systems were incorporated, giving rise to the current generation of workstations.

Abstract in English:

Abstract In 2017, the Brazilian Society of Anesthesiology (SBA) and the National Medical Residency Committee (CNRM) presented a joint competence matrix to train and evaluate physicians specializing in Anesthesiology, which was enforced in 2019. The competency-based curriculum aims to train residents in relation to certain results, in that residents are considered capable when they are able to act in an appropriate and effective manner within certain standards of performance. Canada and the United States (US) also use competency-based curriculum to train their professionals. In Canada, the format is the basis for using an evaluation method known as Entrustable Professional Activities (EPA), in which the mentor assesses residents’ capacity to perform certain tasks, classified in 5 levels. The US, in turn, uses Milestones as evaluation, in which competencies and sub-competencies are assessed according to residents’ progress during training. The present article aims to describe and compare the different competency-based curriculum and the evaluation methods used in the three countries, and proposes a reflection on future paths for medical education in Anesthesiology in Brazil.

Abstract in English:

Abstract Anesthetic agents and/or surgical positions, the total volume of hemangioma may increase under general anesthesia; thus, airway management of patients with a hemangioma may be very difficult. Our patient in this case report has a periorbital and oropharyngeal hemangioma that reaches down to the esophagus. We observed that the size and volume of the hemangioma increased significantly during elective nephrectomy surgery. After adequate therapy with steroids and beta-blockers, the size of the hemangioma decreased during the postoperative care unit monitoring period. We report this case to show the importance of airway management of hemangiomas with the potential for life-threatening complications.

Abstract in English:

Abstract Interscalene brachial plexus block has been widely used in shoulder surgery. We report one case of long-term phrenic palsy following ultrasound-guided interscalene brachial plexus block and we will discuss the possible etiology and mechanism of this disability. For painful shoulder surgery, ultrasound-guided interscalene brachial plexus block remains topical. Alternative blocks, such as suprascapular and axillary blocks, may be reserved for patients with pre-existing respiratory pathology.

Abstract in English:

Abstract Cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome is a rare syndrome characterized by particular craniofacial features, cardiac abnormalities, and multiple organ diseases. Patients present with pulmonary stenosis, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, short neck, micrognathia, laryngomalacia, and tracheomalacia. These conditions may strongly influence patient perioperative outcomes. We describe a 15-year-old child with cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome presenting for a dentistry procedure. She had an uneventful perioperative and postoperative course except for difficult airway management.

Abstract in English:

Abstract Frank-ter Haar syndrome is a rare disorder characterized by multiple skeletal, cardiovascular abnormalities, and facial features. Some of these characteristic facial features are important for anesthesiologists to predict the difficult airway. We present the anesthesia management of an 8-year-old boy with Frank-ter Haar syndrome who underwent posterior spinal instrumentation operation for scoliosis. In these patients, it is vital to anticipate possible difficult intubation before surgery and make all necessary preparations.