Kaitlyn D’Onofrio

DocwireNews

Using neuromuscular blocking drugs in general anesthesia may be tied to a greater likelihood of postoperative pulmonary complications, according to new researchers.&nbsp;The prospective observational cohort study,&nbsp;POPULAR, which was&nbsp;published in&nbsp;The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, included&nbsp;22,803&nbsp;patients (aged&nbsp;&ge;&nbsp;18 years) from 211 hospitals in 28 countries in Europe who received general anesthesia during any inpatient procedure (except cardiac surgery).&nbsp;Researchers found the use of muscle&nbsp;relaxants&nbsp;was associated with more frequent pulmonary complications&nbsp;postoperation&nbsp;in general anesthesia patients (7.6%, n = 1,658) (odds ratio [OR], 1.86). Neither neuromuscular monitoring (OR, 1.31) nor reversal agents (OR, 1.23) decreased the risk of postoperative respiratory complications. Using&nbsp;sugammadex&nbsp;as opposed to neostigmine for reversal (OR, 1.03) or&nbsp;extubation&nbsp;at a train-of-four ratio of 0.9 or more (OR, 1.03) also did not lower the chances of pulmonary complications&nbsp;postoperation.&nbsp;<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Post-anaesthesia <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/pulmonary?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#pulmonary</a> complications after use of muscle relaxants (POPULAR): a multicentre, prospective observational study <a href="https://t.co/BdRRHn1I8j">https://t.co/BdRRHn1I8j</a>
Register now for free <a href="https://twitter.com/LancetRespirMed?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LancetRespirMed</a> &amp; <a href="https://twitter.com/TheLancet?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheLancet</a> content from <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ERSCongress?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ERSCongress</a> <a href="https://t.co/WbY4yBLE8z">https://t.co/WbY4yBLE8z</a> <a href="https://t.co/eOvci2rcDU">pic.twitter.com/eOvci2rcDU</a>
&mdash; The Lancet Respiratory Medicine (@LancetRespirMed) <a href="https://twitter.com/LancetRespirMed/status/1041615006557720578?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 17, 2018</a>
</blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>POPULAR was led by the&nbsp;Technical University of Munich (TUM)&nbsp;and funded by the European Society of&nbsp;Anaesthesiology.&nbsp;Anesthesia may result in some muscle relaxation on its own, but a second medicine is often used to relax the whole body. In some surgeries this may help prevent injury; in others, it may allow for easy joint movement.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;These drugs are particularly needed when operating on a patient&rsquo;s chest or abdomen. They are also used to protect the vocal cords from injury when a tube is placed in the airway to allow artificial ventilation,&rdquo;&nbsp;said Professor Manfred&nbsp;Blobner,&nbsp;an anesthesiologist at TUM&rsquo;s Clinic for Anesthesiology and Intensive Care, as well as&nbsp;chair of the POPULAR steering committee.&nbsp;The study authors concluded, &ldquo;Anaesthetists&nbsp;must balance the potential benefits of neuromuscular blockade against the increased risk of postoperative pulmonary complications.&rdquo;&nbsp;Sources:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-09/tuom-adm091718.php">EurekAlert</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanres/article/PIIS2213-2600(18)30294-7/fulltext">The Lancet Respiratory Medicine</a>

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Muscle Relaxants Tied to Increased Risk of Respiratory Complications When Administered During General Anesthesia

Pulmonology

Using neuromuscular blocking drugs in general anesthesia may be tied to a greater likelihood of postoperative pulmonary complications, according to new researchers.  ...

Muscle Relaxants Tied to Increased Risk of Respiratory Complications When Administered During

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