• Philip A Guise and Kailun Wang.
• Department of Anaesthesia, Auckland City Hospital, Auckland, New Zealand.
• Anaesth Intensive Care. 2022 Jul 1; 50 (4): 289-294.

AbstractThere is a lack of data to support either continuation or interruption of non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants for cataract and vitreoretinal surgery. A prospective audit was undertaken of 291 patients undergoing cataract surgery or vitreoretinal surgery, predominantly under sub-Tenon's block, while continuing these agents. The median time from last non-vitamin K oral anticoagulant dose to the insertion of sub-Tenon's block was five hours. No patient required emergency reversal of anticoagulation. There were no sight-threatening complications in the immediate perioperative period, although two vitreoretinal patients (3.8%) had a moderate haemorrhagic complication on day five, and two cataract patients (0.8%) had a minor haemorrhagic complication on days one and 14 postoperatively. Despite continuing their non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants, three (1%) cataract patients had a moderate thromboembolic complication within the 30-day postoperative period. The risk of haemorrhagic complications associated with continuation of anticoagulation with non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants for cataract and vitreoretinal surgery is low, and this audit supports the continuation of non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants for our patients having cataract and vitreoretinal surgery.

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