Journal of clinical anesthesia
-
Randomized Controlled Trial
Hypoventilation in the PACU is associated with hypoventilation in the surgical ward: Post-hoc analysis of a randomized clinical trial.
To evaluate the association between early postoperative hypoventilation in the last hour of the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) stay and hypoventilation during the rest of the first 48 postoperative hours in the surgical ward. ⋯ In adults recovering from abdominal surgery, events of hypoventilation during the first postoperative hour are associated with similar events during the rest of the first 48 postoperative hours, with positive predictive value approaching 100%. Sixty-one patients had ward hypoventilation that was not preceded by hypoventilation in PACU.