Objectives
The authors investigated the management of neuromuscular blocking agents (NMBAs) for
pediatric patients after cardiac surgery, and compared the outcomes of patients who
received prophylactic NMBA (pNMBA) infusions and patients without pNMBA infusions.
Design
A retrospective cohort study.
Setting
At a tertiary teaching hospital.
Participants
Patients younger than 18, with congenital heart disease, who underwent cardiac surgery.
Interventions
Commencement of NMBA infusion in the first 2 hours after surgery
Measurements and Main Results
The primary endpoint was a composite of one or more of the following major adverse
events (MAEs) that occurred within 7 days after surgery: death from any cause, a circulatory
collapse that needed cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and requirement for extracorporeal
membrane oxygenation. The secondary endpoints included the total duration of mechanical
ventilation for the first 30 days after surgery. A total of 566 patients were included
in this study. The MAEs occurred in 13 patients (2.3%). An NMBA was commenced within
2 hours after surgery in 207 patients (36.6%). There were significant differences
in the incidence of postoperative MAEs between the pNMBA group and the non-pNMBA group
(5.3% v 0.6%; p < 0.001). In multivariate regression models, pNMBA infusion was not significantly
associated with the incidence of MAEs (odds ratio: 1.79, 95% CI: 0.23-13.93, p = 0.58),
but was significantly associated with prolonged mechanical ventilation by 3.85 days
(p < 0.001).
Conclusions
Postoperative prophylactic neuromuscular blockade after cardiac surgery can be associated
with prolonged mechanical ventilation, but has no association with MAEs among pediatric
patients with congenital heart disease.
Key Words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: February 22, 2023
Publication stage
In Press Corrected ProofIdentification
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