Does Active Chest Tube Clearance After Cardiac Surgery Provide Any Clear Benefits?

Active Chest Tube Clearance Added to an Enhanced Recovery After Cardiac Surgery (ERAS) Program Improves Outcomes and Reduces Resource Utilization

OBJECTIVE

We initiated a cardiac enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery (ERAS) program in early 2019, protocolized it and applied it to all patients in 2020, and added the use of active chest tube clearance (ATC) in 2022. Prospective data collection of ATC patients was compared with historical controls to determine the impact of the device on outcomes.

METHODS

The study comprised 1,334 patients with 650 in the control group (group 1) and 684 in the ATC intervention group (group 2). Group 1 (historical control) consisted of 650 patients from January 1, 2020, to October 31, 2020, and January 1, 2021, to October 31, 2021. From October 31, 2021, to December 31, 2021, we introduced ATC use per protocol. Group 2 (ATC) consisted of 684 patients treated consecutively from January 1, 2022, to August 31, 2023, with ATC. The preoperative characteristics and operative procedures between groups were similar.

RESULTS

Patients in the ATC intervention (group 2) experienced a 41% reduction in the composite of retained blood syndrome (8.2% in group 1 vs 4.8% in group 2, P = 0.014). Postoperative atrial fibrillation was 17% reduced for group 2 (178 [33.8%] in group 1 vs 158 [28.1%] in group 2, P = 0.049). Group 2 had a 30% reduction in median intensive care unit (ICU) hours (51.6 [30.1 to 76.9] h in group 1 vs 36.3 [20.7 to 687] h in group 2, P < 0.001). Twenty-one patients (3.2%) were readmitted to the ICU after initial discharge to the step-down unit in group 1 and only 8 (1.17%) in group 2 (P = 0.013).

CONCLUSIONS

The addition of the ATC intervention to an established ERAS program in a high-volume private practice setting decreased complications, improved outcomes, and decreased resource utilization.

Automated line-clearing chest tubes reduce postoperative pain and atrial fibrillation after cardiac surgery

Objective

Recent advancements in chest tube technologies have gained interest for their ability to enhance postoperative recovery via reduction of retained blood syndrome after cardiothoracic surgery. The present study investigates the effect of the Centese Thoraguard automated line-clearance chest tube system on postoperative pain and recovery after cardiac surgery.

Methods

This was a single-center retrospective review of 1771 adult patients undergoing nonemergency cardiac surgery between January 2021 and December 2022. Perioperative data were analyzed in 184 patients undergoing surgery with Thoraguard automated clearance chest tubes and 1587 patients with conventional chest tubes. Postoperative outcomes were compared in a propensity-matched cohort of 133 patient pairs with similar preoperative characteristics.

Results

Patients undergoing cardiac surgery with automated clearance chest tubes demonstrated significant reductions in pain scores (0-10) compared with conventional chest tubes on the third postoperative day (5 vs 6, P = .02) and at hospital discharge (0 vs 3, P = .04). Automated clearance chest tubes were associated with a shorter time on the ventilator (5.3 vs 5.8 hours, P < .001). There was a significant reduction in postoperative atrial fibrillation (18.1% vs 30.8%, P = .02) in patients receiving automated clearance chest tubes. There were no significant differences in mortality, myocardial infarction, or stroke between automated line-clearing and conventional chest tubes.

Conclusions

The use of the Thoraguard automated line-clearing chest tube system in routine cardiac surgery was associated with improved postoperative pain control, decreased ventilator duration, and decreased postoperative atrial fibrillation without increased morbidity or mortality.

Hydrogel-coated and active clearance chest drains in cardiac surgery: real-world results of a single-center study

PURPOSE

Cardiac surgery patients require chest drains for postoperative fluid drainage. Innovations in this field include chemical drain coating and manual clot extraction systems, aiming to provide reduced clotting and improved patient comfort. This study compares outcomes using hydrogel-coated, active clearance and conventional chest drains.

METHODS

Patients with cardiac surgery at our institution from January 2023 to September 2023 were included. Drain allocation was based on surgeon's choice, with either a combination of hydrogel-coated and conventional, active clearance and conventional, or conventional drains alone. Drain data and clinical outcomes were recorded prospectively.

RESULTS

One hundred seventy-eight patients (62.9 ± 11.7 years, 67.4% male) received a total of 512 chest drains intraoperatively. Hydrogel-coated and active clearance drains showed higher drainage volumes than conventional drains (p < 0.001, respectively). Patency was lowest in conventional drains (36.7% vs. 98.8% for hydrogel-coated, p < 0.001, and vs. 96.6% for active clearance drains, p < 0.001). Conventional drains showed 5.9 times the odds (95% CI 2.0-25.2) of large pleural effusions compared to hydrogel-coated and 12.0 times the odds (95% CI 1.9-504.1) compared to active clearance drains. Patients with hydrogel-coated drains had the shortest length of stay (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

Hydrogel-coated and active clearance drains show improved outcomes compared to conventional drains in cardiac surgery.

Enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery: A literature review

Enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery (ERACS) represents a constellation of evidence-based peri-operative methods aimed to reduce the physiological and psychological stress patients experience after cardiac surgery, with the primary objective of providing an expedited recovery to pre-operative functional status. The method involves pre-operative, intra-operative, and post-operative interventions as well as direct patient engagement to be successful. Numerous publications in regard to the benefits of enhanced recovery have been presented, including decreased post-operative complications, shortened length of stay, decreased overall healthcare costs, and higher patient satisfaction. Implementing an ERACS program undeniably requires a culture change, a methodical shift in the approach of these patients that ultimately allows the team to achieve the aforementioned goals; therefore, team-building, planning, and anticipation of obstacles should be expected.

Confounding adjustment in observational studies on cardiothoracic interventions: a systematic review of methodological practice

OBJECTIVES

It is unknown which confounding adjustment methods are currently used in the field of cardiothoracic surgery and whether these are appropriately applied. The aim of this study was to systematically evaluate the quality of conduct and reporting of confounding adjustment methods in observational studies on cardiothoracic interventions.

METHODS

A systematic review was performed, which included all observational studies that compared different interventions and were published between 1 January and 1 July 2022, in 3 European and American cardiothoracic surgery journals. Detailed information on confounding adjustment methods was extracted and subsequently described.

RESULTS

Ninety-two articles were included in the analysis. Outcome regression (n = 49, 53%) and propensity score (PS) matching (n = 44, 48%) were most popular (sometimes used in combination), whereas 11 (12%) studies applied no method at all. The way of selecting confounders was not reported in 42 (46%) of the studies, solely based on previous literature or clinical knowledge in 14 (16%), and (partly) data-driven in 25 (27%). For the studies that applied PS matching, the matched cohorts comprised on average 46% of the entire study population (range 9-82%).

CONCLUSIONS

Current reporting of confounding adjustment methods is insufficient in a large part of observational studies on cardiothoracic interventions, which makes quality judgement difficult. Appropriate application of confounding adjustment methods is crucial for causal inference on optimal treatment strategies for clinical practice. Reporting on these methods is an important aspect of this, which can be improved.