Factors affecting adherence to recommendations on pre-operative cardiac testing: A cohort study.

Background: Cardiac risk evaluation prior to noncardiac surgery is fundamental to tailor peri-operative management to patient's estimated risk. Data on the degree of adherence to guidelines in patients at cardiovascular risk in Europe and factors influencing adherence are underexplored.

Objectives: The aim of this analysis was to describe the degree of adherence to [2014 European Society of Cardiology (ESC)/European Society of Anaesthesiology (ESA) guidelines] recommendations on rest echocardiography [transthoracic echocardiography (TTE)] and to stress imaging prior to noncardiac surgery in a large European sample and to assess factors potentially affecting adherence.