[Effect of volume replacement with hydroxyethyl starch solution for blood loss on splanchnic oxygenation in patients undergoing cytoreductive surgery for ovarian carcinoma].

Objective: To investigate the effect of medium molecular weight hydroxyethyl starch solution (HES) administered as replacement for estimated blood losses (EBL) during cytoreductive surgery for ovarian carcinoma on splanchnic oxygenation.

Methods: Cytoreductive surgery was operated upon forty-two patients with ovarian carcinoma. As soon as the EBL was higher than 10% but less than 20% of the estimated blood volume, the patients were randomly assigned to receive a volume of lactated Ringer's solution (LRS) equal to three times the EBL (LRS group, n = 22) or a volume of 6% HES equal to the EBL (HES group, n = 20). Tissue oxygenation was assessed indirectly by measuring the tonometric parameters of stomach, including difference between gastric intramucosal PsCO(2) and arterial PaCO(2) (Ps-aCO(2) gap), gastric intramucosal pH (pHi) and arterial lactate acid concentration 30 min after induction of anesthesia (baseline value), 1 h and 2 h after skin incision, and at the end of surgery.

Results: At the end of surgery, the Ps-aCO(2) gap was 8.7 mm Hg +/- 1.6 mm Hg in the HES group, significantly lower than that in the LRS group (18.74 mm Hg +/- 4.4 mm Hg, P < 0.01), while the pHi in the HES group was 7.30 +/- 0.05, significantly higher than that in the LRS group (7.21 +/- 0.07, P < 0.01). There was no significant difference in arterial lactate acid concentration between the two groups.

Conclusion: In patients undergoing major surgery, volume resuscitation with medium molecular weight HES improves the splanchnic blood flow and tissue oxygenation.