Prevention of postoperative atrial fibrillation in cardiac surgery: a quality improvement project.

Purpose: Postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) has an incidence of 20-60% in cardiac surgery. The Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists and the European Association of Cardiothoracic Anaesthesiology Practice Advisory have recommended postoperative beta blockers and amiodarone for the prevention of POAF. By employing quality improvement (QI) strategies, we sought to increase the use of these agents and to reduce the incidence of POAF among our patients undergoing cardiac surgery.

Hypoxemia During One-Lung Ventilation: Does It Really Matter?

Purpose Of Review: Hypoxemia during one-lung ventilation, while decreasing in frequency, persists as an intraoperative challenge for anesthesiologists. Discerning when desaturation and resultant hypoxemia correlates to tissue hypoxia is challenging in the perioperative setting and requires a thorough understanding of the physiology of oxygen delivery and tissue utilization.

Recent Findings: Oxygen delivery is not directly correlated with peripheral oxygen saturation in patients undergoing one-lung ventilation, emphasizing the importance of hemoglobin concentration and cardiac output in avoiding tissue hypoxia.

Ultrasound measurement of the size of the anterior tibial muscle group: the effect of exercise and leg dominance.

Background: Knowledge of normal muscle characteristics is crucial in planning rehabilitation programmes for injured athletes. There is a high incidence of ankle and anterior tibial symptoms in football players, however little is known about the effect of limb dominance on the anterior tibial muscle group (ATMG). The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of limb dominance and sports-specific activity on ATMG thickness in Gaelic footballers and non-football playing controls using ultrasound measurements, and to compare results from transverse and longitudinal scans.