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Biomedical subjects

John G Augoustides

Publications and source records attributed to John G Augoustides.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Clinical predictors for prolonged intensive care unit stay in adults undergoing thoracic aortic surgery requiring deep hypothermic circulatory arrest.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to describe clinical predictors for prolonged length of stay in the intensive care unit (PLOS-ICU) after adult thoracic aortic surgery requiring standardized deep hypothermic circulatory arrest (DHCA); and to determine the incidence of PLOS-ICU after DHCA, univariate predictors for PLOS-ICU, and multivariate predictors for PLOS-ICU. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective and observational study. PLOS-ICU was defined as longer than 5 days in the ICU. STUDY SETTING: Cardiothoracic operating rooms and the ICU. PARTICIPANTS: All adults requiring thoracic aortic repair with DHCA INTERVENTIONS: None. MAIN RESULTS: The cohort size was 144. The incidence of PLOS-ICU was 27.8%. The mortality rate was 11.1%. Univariate predictors for PLOS-ICU were age, stroke, DHCA duration, vasopressor dependence >72 hours, mediastinal re-exploration for bleeding, and renal dysfunction. Multivariate predictors for PLOS-ICU were stroke, vasopressor dependence >72 hours, and renal dysfunction. CONCLUSIONS: PLOS-ICU after DHCA is common. The identified multivariate predictors merit further hypothesis-driven research to enhance perioperative protection of the brain, kidney, and cardiovascular system.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Perioperative outcome in adults undergoing elective deep hypothermic circulatory arrest with retrograde cerebral perfusion in proximal aortic arch repair: evaluation of protocol-based care.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to describe perioperative outcome in adults undergoing elective proximal aortic arch repair with protocol-based deep hypothermic circulatory arrest (DHCA) with retrograde cerebral perfusion (RCP). DESIGN: Retrospective and observational. SETTING: Cardiothoracic operating rooms and intensive care unit. PARTICIPANTS: Seventy-nine consecutive adults undergoing elective proximal aortic arch repair with DHCA (1999-2001). INTERVENTIONS: None. MAIN RESULTS: Average age of the patients was 64.9 years. Mean circulatory arrest time was 30.4 +/- 8.5 minutes. Perioperative mortality was 7.6%. Perioperative stroke incidence was 3.8%. Tracheal extubation was successful in 87.3% of patients within 24 hours of operation. Of the cohort, 80.8% were discharged from the intensive care unit within 72 hours of surgery. Median length of hospital stay was 7.4 days. Repeat mediastinal exploration because of bleeding occurred in 3.8% of patients. Although perioperative renal dysfunction (defined as >1.5-fold increase in plasma creatinine concentration) developed in 24.0% of patients, only 3.8% required dialysis. CONCLUSIONS: The above parameters establish a baseline incidence for major perioperative complications in adults undergoing elective DHCA with RCP for elective proximal aortic arch repair. In approaching the open aortic arch for short periods of circulatory arrest, deep hypothermia with adjunctive RCP is safe and effective.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Propofol for the management of emergence agitation after electroconvulsive therapy: review of a case series.

We report the successful use of propofol in the management of a case series (n = 10) of patients with severe, treatment-resistant, postictal agitation (PIA) in the setting of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). Despite prior inadequate response to intravenous midazolam and other agents, propofol therapy was highly effective with good control of PIA achieved in all cases. Propofol was well tolerated with occasional, transient, and reversible drops in blood the pressure being the only adverse event noted. The administration of propofol was also versatile being effective, as either a bolus or a bolus followed by an infusion. It appeared to be synergistic with existing therapy. Although further study is needed, these results suggest that propofol may be a very valuable additional agent for the ECT clinician in the management of PIA, which is a common entity in the setting of ECT.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Analysis of the interatrial septum by transesophageal echocardiography in adult cardiac surgical patients: anatomic variants and correlation with patent foramen ovale.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to document the perioperative prevalence of anatomic variants of the interatrial septum (IAS), to classify atrial septal aneurysm based on mobility pattern, and to correlate anatomic variants of IAS with patent foramen ovale (PFO). DESIGN: A prospective observational study. SETTING: University hospital (single institution). PARTICIPANTS: Patients presenting for cardiac surgery requiring transesophageal echocardiography. INTERVENTIONS: Multiplane TEE in 2 atrial views with color-flow Doppler and contrast echocardiography with a provocative respiratory maneuver. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The cohort size was 206. PFO prevalence was 30.1%. The prevalence of IAS lipomatous hypertrophy was 43.2%, atrial septal flap (ASF) 43.2%, and atrial septal aneurysm (ASA) 28.6%. ASF and ASA were significantly ( p < 0.05) associated with PFO. Selected ASA subtypes are significantly associated with PFO ( p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: IAS anatomic variants are common in adult cardiac surgical patients undergoing multiplane TEE. The presence of ASF and ASA predicts enhanced PFO detection. ASA mobility patterns significantly correlate ( p < 0.05) with the presence of PFO.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

A randomized controlled clinical trial of real-time needle-guided ultrasound for internal jugular venous cannulation in a large university anesthesia department.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate needle-guided ultrasound for internal jugular venous cannulation in a large university anesthesia department, to determine cumulative cannulation success by method, to determine first-pass cannulation success by method and operator, and to determine arterial puncture by method and operator. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective, observational, and randomized. Blinding was not possible. Cohort size was calculated for 80% power to detect a technique difference, with significance defined as p < 0.05. SETTING: Operating rooms of the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. PARTICIPANTS: Elective surgical patients requiring internal jugular venous cannulation. INTERVENTIONS: Cannulation of the internal jugular vein occurred by needle-guided ultrasound (NGU) or by ultrasound without a needle guide. MAIN RESULTS: Four hundred thirty-four procedures were studied in 429 patients. NGU significantly enhances cannulation success after first (68.9%-80.9%, p = 0.0054) and second (80.0%-93.1%, p = 0.0001) needle passes. Cumulative cannulation success by the seventh needle pass is 100%, regardless of technique. The needle-guide specifically improves first-pass success in the junior operator (65.6%-79.8%, p = 0.0144). Arterial puncture averages 4.2%, regardless of technique (p > 0.05) or operator (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Although the needle guide facilitates prompt cannulation with ultrasound in the novice operator, it offers no additional protection against arterial puncture. This may be because of a lack of control of needle depth rather than needle direction. A possible solution may be biplanar ultrasound for central venous cannulation.

Anesthesia Department, Hospital↗
PubMed2005

Major clinical outcomes in adults undergoing thoracic aortic surgery requiring deep hypothermic circulatory arrest: quantification of organ-based perioperative outcome and detection of opportunities for perioperative intervention.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to describe clinical outcome after adult thoracic aortic surgery requiring standardized deep hypothermic circulatory arrest (DHCA), to determine mortality and length of stay, neurologic outcome, cardiorespiratory outcome, and hemostatic and renal outcome after DHCA. DESIGN: Retrospective and observational. SETTING: Cardiothoracic operating rooms and intensive care unit (ICU). PARTICIPANTS: All adults requiring thoracic aortic repair with DHCA. INTERVENTIONS: None. The study was observational. MAIN RESULTS: The cohort size was 110. All patients received an antifibrinolytic. The mortality rate was 8.2%. The mean length of stay was 6.8 days (ICU) and 14.0 days (hospital). The incidence of stroke was 8.1% and postoperative delirium was 10.9%. The rate of postoperative atrial fibrillation was 43.6%; 19.1% required postoperative mechanical ventilation longer than 72 hours. Chest tube drainage was 931 mL for the first 24 hours. Postoperative dialysis was required in 1.8% of patients. Renal dysfunction occurred in 40% to 50% of patients, depending on the definition. CONCLUSIONS: The protocol for DHCA at the authors' institution is associated with superior or equivalent perioperative outcomes to those reported in the literature. This study identified the need for further quantification of the clinical outcomes after DHCA in order to prioritize outcome-based hypothesis-driven prospective intervention in DHCA.

Aged↗
PubMed2005

Customized anesthetic preservation of ictal threshold in electroconvulsive therapy: role of adjunctive remifentanil with etomidate.

We present a case of anesthesia for electroconvulsive (ECT) therapy that was complicated by emetic sensitivity to etomidate, fragile ictal threshold, and mild pseudocholinesterase deficiency. The anesthetic was designed in this patient taking all his issues in consideration. The mild pseudocholinesterase deficiency necessitated a (50-75%) reduction in succinylcholine dosage, careful monitoring of the train of four, and postictal amnestic coverage to prevent paralysis upon waking. The significant emetic response to etomidate prompted substitution to propofol and preemptive ondansetron. Propofol significantly raised the ictal threshold but significantly reduced the postprocedural emesis. Eventually, this clinical challenge was resolved with adjunctive use of low-dose etomidate and remifentanil. This combination preserved the ictal parameters, providing patient comfort, good clinical response, and therapeutic efficacy. Although seizure duration and quality often are restored with hyperventilation and caffeine, this case necessitated a return to etomidate for the restoration of satisfactory ictal parameters. Although this effect of remifentanil has been described with methohexital, and etomidate with alfentanil, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case of adjunctive remifentanil with etomidate for preserving ictal threshold. The outpatient course of ECT was thus completed with all psychiatric and anesthetic goals satisfied: adequate seizure quality and duration, no paralysis upon waking, no post-ECT nausea and vomiting, and patient satisfaction. Anesthesiologists should be aware of factors influencing the seizure duration and, keeping in mind the coexisting medical conditions of the patient, adjustments should be made to get the best possible outcome.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Pain and physical function are similar following axillary, muscle-sparing vs posterolateral thoracotomy.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: We set out to determine whether there is a difference in postoperative pain and recovery after the patient undergoes the axillary muscle-sparing incision (ie, muscle-sparing thoracotomy [MT]) vs the modified posterolateral incision (ie, posterolateral thoracotomy [PT]). DESIGN: Analysis of a database originally collected to determine the effect of the timing of epidural analgesia on long-term outcome after thoracotomy. SETTING: The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. PATIENTS: Patients presenting for lobectomy, segmentectomy, or bilobectomy. MEASUREMENTS: Pain, physical activity, and the extent that pain interfered with activities following major thoracotomy were prospectively assessed with standard questionnaires (ie, the brief pain inventory and the Medical Outcomes Study 36-item short form) on postoperative days 1 to 5, and at postoperative weeks 4, 8, 12, 24, 36, and 48 by a blinded research assistant. Perioperative care was standardized and included patient-controlled thoracic epidural analgesia until thoracostomy tube removal. RESULTS: Eighty-two subjects underwent MT and 38 subjects underwent PT during the 16-month accrual period. There were no significant differences in demographics. Pain reported during hospitalization and after hospital discharge did not differ with respect to incision type (p > or = 0.17). Postoperative physical activity levels were significantly less than those reported preoperatively, with a trend toward better functioning in the MT groups after 8 weeks. Incision type did not predict complications, morbidity, or mortality. CONCLUSIONS: When comparing patients who had undergone vertical, axillary, wholly MT to those who had undergone modified serratus muscle-sparing PT, postoperative differences in pain were not apparent. One should not anticipate reduced pain or more rapid overall recovery following MT, at least when epidural analgesia is used aggressively for perioperative pain control.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed2004

Diagnosis of patent foramen ovale with multiplane transesophageal echocardiography in adult cardiac surgical patients.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate multiplane transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) for detection of patent foramen ovale (PFO) and to compare multiplane TEE with visual inspection (VI) for PFO detection. DESIGN: A prospective observational study. SETTING: University hospital (single institution). PARTICIPANTS: Patients presenting for cardiac surgery requiring TEE. INTERVENTIONS: Multiplane TEE including 2 atrial views with color-flow Doppler (CFD) and contrast echocardiography (CE) with a provocative respiratory maneuver (PRM) and comparison of multiplane TEE and VI with respect to PFO detection. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The cohort size was 187. PFO prevalence was 27.3%. CFD with serial decrease of the Nyquist limit detected 51% of all PFO: 41.2% in the bicaval view alone, 27.5% in the 4-chamber view alone, and 9.8% in both views. CE detected 78.4% of all PFO: 72.5% with PRM, 45.1% with no PRM, and 27.4% with/without PRM. PFO detection by multiplane TEE and visual inspection were correlated in 41 subjects. TEE diagnosed 11 PFO (26.8% prevalence, 3 missed by VI). VI diagnosed 12 PFO (29.3% prevalence, 4 missed by TEE). CONCLUSIONS: Multiplane TEE is a gold standard for detection of PFO. Despite advances in TEE technology, 2-dimensional imaging does not detect all PFO. To maximize PFO detection, multiple TEE modalities are required in multiple views, despite a low Nyquist limit for CFD or a PRM for CE. Even though multiplane TEE is equivalent to VI for PFO detection, the discrepancy rate may be an important consideration in the individual case.

Cardiac Surgical Procedures↗