Safety and analgesic efficacy of intravenous dexmedetomidine in arthroscopic knee surgery

Esketamine use is associated with shortened postoperative hospital stay in patients after knee arthroscopic surgery: a propensity score-matched cohort study

BACKGROUND

Previous studies have examined anesthetics to improve postoperative prognosis after knee arthroscopic surgery. However, it is currently unknown whether perioperative anesthetics can influence postoperative hospital stay. We investigated the impact of esketamine after knee arthroscopic surgery on post-operative length of stay, fever and surgical site infection.

METHODS

This study included 455 patients who underwent knee surgery between January2020 and August 2021at a tertiary hospital in China. Patient characteristics, preoperative laboratory values, intra-operative anesthetic data, and postoperative outcomes were collected. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses with or without propensity score matching were performed to identify factors related to post-operative discharge within 3 days(PD3).

RESULTS

A total of 297 cases met our inclusion criteria. The mean age of patients was 42 ± 14 years, mean body mass index, 24.1 ± 3.5 kg/m2, 157(53%) patients were male. Meniscus-related procedures accounted for the most part of all the procedures with a percentage of 40.4%, followed by combined procedures of 35.4%. After we adjusted for demographic and intraoperative characteristics with propensity score matching, esketamine use was significantly associated with PD3 with the highest odds ratio of 2.28 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.18-4.41, p = 0.014).

CONCLUSION

Esketamine use was associated with PD3 in patients underwent knee arthroscopic surgery. The findings of this study will be useful to anesthesiologists in making informed decisions regarding the choice of anesthetics for knee joint diseases.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

This study was approved by the Ethics Committee (Approval No.:2023-041-01) of the Eighth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University and retrospectively registered.

Postoperative Delirium after Dexmedetomidine versus Propofol Sedation in Healthy Older Adults Undergoing Orthopedic Lower Limb Surgery with Spinal Anesthesia: A Randomized Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND

Delirium is a critical postoperative complication in older patients. Based on the hypothesis that intraoperative dexmedetomidine sedation would lower postoperative delirium than propofol sedation would, the authors compared the incidence of postoperative delirium in older adults, using the mentioned sedatives.

METHODS

This double-blinded, randomized controlled study included 748 patients, aged 65 yr or older, who were scheduled for elective lower extremity orthopedic surgery, between June 2017 and October 2021. Patients were randomized equally into two groups in a 1:1 ratio according to the intraoperative sedative used (dexmedetomidine vs. propofol). The postoperative delirium incidence was considered the primary outcome measure; it was determined using the confusion assessment method, on the first three postoperative days. The mean arterial pressure and heart rate were evaluated as secondary outcomes.

RESULTS

The authors enrolled 732 patients in the intention-to-treat analyses. The delirium incidence was lower in the dexmedetomidine group than in the propofol group (11 [3.0%] vs. 24 [6.6%]; odds ratio, 0.42; 95% CI, 0.201 to 0.86; P = 0.036). During sedation, the mean arterial pressure (median [interquartile range] mmHg) was higher in the dexmedetomidine group (77 [71 to 84]) than in the propofol group (74 [69 to 79]; P < 0.001); however, it significantly fell lower (74 [68 to 80]) than that of the propofol group (80 [74 to 87]) in the postanesthesia care unit (P < 0.001). Lower heart rates (beats/min) were recorded with the use of dexmedetomidine than with propofol, both during sedation (60 [55 to 66] vs. 63 [58 to 70]) and in the postanesthesia care unit (64 [58 to 72] vs. 68 [62-77]; P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Dexmedetomidine showed a lower incidence of postoperative delirium than propofol in healthy older adults undergoing lower extremity orthopedic surgery.

EDITOR’S PERSPECTIVE

Impact of Dexmedetomidine Infusion on Postoperative Acute Kidney Injury in Elderly Patients Undergoing Major Joint Replacement: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Purpose

Postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI) is a frequent complication in elderly patients that increases morbidity and mortality. Approximately 1.7 million people die from AKI worldwide every year. Dexmedetomidine (Dex) is often used as an adjunct to multimodal analgesia. Our study investigated whether Dex could safely decrease the incidence of AKI in elderly patients undergoing major joint replacement.

Methods

A single-center retrospective study was conducted in patients aged >65 years undergoing major joint replacement. Propensity score–matching analysis was used, and a total of 1,006 patients were matched successfully. The primary outcome was the incidence of postoperative AKI. Secondary outcomes included perioperative adverse complications, opioid consumption, time to extubation, and length of hospital stay.

Results

Among the 1,006 patients included, postoperative AKI occurred in 9.3% (n=94). The Dex group (perioperative Dex infusion) had lower incidence of postoperative AKI than the control group (7.2% vs 11.5%, P=0.017). Compared with the control group, the Dex group had less opioid consumption (P<0.05), reduced time to extubation (P=0.004), and shorter length of hospital stay (P=0.001). The Dex group also showed higher incidence of bradycardia (20.1% vs 15.1%, P=0.038). There were no differences in intraoperative hypotension (19.5% vs 17.5%), postoperative nausea and vomiting (4.2% vs 5.4%), time in PACU (45.0±6.4 vs 45.5±6.2 minutes), or rate of ICU admission (9.7% vs 11.1%) between the Dex group and control group (All P>0.05).

Conclusion

This retrospective study showed Dex infusion in elderly patients undergoing major joint replacement was associated with lower incidence of postoperative AKI, less opioid consumption, and shorter extubation time and hospital stay. However, the Dex group had higher incidence of bradycardia. We found no statistical differences in other perioperative adverse complications between the groups.