Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Jul 1;40(7):483-494.
doi: 10.1097/EJA.0000000000001848. Epub 2023 May 15.

Incidences and outcomes of intra-operative vs. postoperative paediatric cardiac arrest: A retrospective cohort study of 42 776 anaesthetics in children who underwent noncardiac surgery in a Thai tertiary care hospital

Sirirat Rattana-Arpa  1 , Nophanan Chaikittisilpa, Salalee Srikongrak, Suphanithi Udomnak, Naiyana Aroonpruksakul, Taniga Kiatchai
Affiliations

Incidences and outcomes of intra-operative vs. postoperative paediatric cardiac arrest: A retrospective cohort study of 42 776 anaesthetics in children who underwent noncardiac surgery in a Thai tertiary care hospital

Sirirat Rattana-Arpa et al. Eur J Anaesthesiol. .

Abstract

Background: The reported incidence of paediatric perioperative cardiac arrest (PPOCA) in most developing countries ranges from 2.7 to 22.9 per 10 000 anaesthetics, resulting in mortality rates of 2.0 to 10.7 per 10 000 anaesthetics. The definitions of 'peri-operative' cardiac arrest often include the intra-operative period and extends from 60 min to 48 h after anaesthesia completion. However, the characteristics of cardiac arrests, care settings, and resuscitation quality may differ between intra-operative and early postoperative cardiac arrests.

Objective: To compare the mortality rates between intraoperative and early postoperative cardiac arrests (<24 h) following anaesthesia for paediatric noncardiac surgery.

Design: A retrospective cohort study.

Setting: In a tertiary care centre in Thailand during 2014 to 2019, the peri-operative period was defined as from the beginning of anaesthesia care until 24 h after anaesthesia completion.

Patients: Paediatric patients aged 0 to 17 years who underwent anaesthesia for noncardiac surgery.

Main outcome measures: Mortality rates.

Results: A total of 42 776 anaesthetics were identified, with 63 PPOCAs and 23 deaths (36.5%). The incidence (95% confidence interval) of PPOCAs and mortality were 14.7 (11.5 to 18.8) and 5.4 (3.6 to 8.1) per 10 000 anaesthetics, respectively. Among 63 PPOCAs, 41 (65%) and 22 (35%) occurred during the intra-operative and postoperative periods, respectively. The median [min to max] time of postoperative cardiac arrest was 3.84 [0.05 to 19.47] h after anaesthesia completion. Mortalities (mortality rate) of postoperative cardiac arrest were significantly higher than that of intra-operative cardiac arrest at 14 (63.6%) vs. 9 (22.0%, P = 0.001). Multivariate analysis of risk factors for mortality included emergency status and duration of cardiopulmonary resuscitation with adjusted odds ratio 5.388 (95% confidence interval (1.031 to 28.160) and 1.067 (1.016 to 1.120).

Conclusions: Postoperative cardiac arrest resulted in a higher mortality rate than intra-operative cardiac arrest. A high level of care should be provided for at least 24 h after the completion of anaesthesia.

Trial registration: None.

Clinical trial number and registry url: NA.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Causes of cardiac arrest for noncardiac surgery (n = 63 cardiac arrests).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Christensen RE, Lee AC, Gowen MS, et al. . Pediatric perioperative cardiac arrest, death in the off hours: a report from Wake Up Safe, the pediatric quality improvement initiative. Anesth Analg 2018; 127:472–477. - PubMed
    1. Habre W, Disma N, Virag K, et al. . Incidence of severe critical events in paediatric anaesthesia (APRICOT): a prospective multicentre observational study in 261 hospitals in Europe. Lancet Respir Med 2017; 5:412–425. - PubMed
    1. Flick RP, Sprung J, Harrison TE, et al. . Perioperative cardiac arrests in children between 1988 and 2005 at a tertiary referral center: a study of 92,881 patients. Anesthesiology 2007; 106:226–237. quiz 413–4. - PubMed
    1. van der Griend BF, Lister NA, McKenzie IM, et al. . Postoperative mortality in children after 101,885 anesthetics at a tertiary pediatric hospital. Anesth Analg 2011; 112:1440–1447. - PubMed
    1. Zgleszewski SE, Graham DA, Hickey PR, et al. . Anesthesiologist- and system-related risk factors for risk-adjusted pediatric anesthesia-related cardiac arrest. Anesth Analg 2016; 122:482–489. - PubMed