Browsing by Author "Greene, Nathaniel H"

Now showing 1 - 10 of 10
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    A Study of Practice Behavior for Endotracheal Intubation Site for Children With Congenital Heart Disease Undergoing Surgery: Impact of Endotracheal Intubation Site on Perioperative Outcomes-An Analysis of the Society of Thoracic Surgeons Congenital Cardiac Anesthesia Society Database.
    (Anesthesia and analgesia, 2018-09-05) Greene, Nathaniel H; Jooste, Edmund H; Thibault, Dylan P; Wallace, Amelia S; Wang, Alice; Vener, David F; Matsouaka, Roland A; Jacobs, Marshall L; Jacobs, Jeffrey P; Hill, Kevin D; Ames, Warwick A
    In adults undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass surgery, oral intubation is typically preferred over nasal intubation due to reduced risk of sinusitis and infection. In children, nasal intubation is more common and sometimes preferred due to perceived benefits of less postoperative sedation and a lower risk for accidental extubation. This study sought to describe the practice of nasal intubation in the pediatric population undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass surgery and assess the risks/benefits of a nasal route against an oral one.Patients <18 years of age in the Society of Thoracic Surgeons Congenital Heart Surgery Database between January 2010 and December 2015 were included. Patients with a preoperative endotracheal tube, tracheostomy, or known airway anomalies were excluded. Multivariable modeling was used to assess the association between route of tracheal intubation and a composite measure of infection risk (wound infection, mediastinitis, septicemia, pneumonia, and endocarditis). Covariates were included to adjust for important patient characteristics (eg, weight, age, comorbidities), case complexity, and center effects. Secondary outcomes included length of intubation, hospital length of stay, and airway complications including accidental extubations. We also performed a subanalysis in children <12 months of age in high-volume centers (>100 cases/y) examining how infection risk may change with age at the time of surgery.Nasal intubation was used in 41% of operations in neonates, 38% in infants, 15% in school-aged children, and 2% in adolescents. Nasal intubation appeared protective for accidental extubation only in neonates (P = .02). Multivariable analysis in infants and neonates showed that the nasal route of intubation was not associated with the infection composite (relative risk [RR], 0.84; 95% CI, 0.59-1.18) or a shorter length of stay (RR, 0.992; 95% CI, 0.947-1.039), but was associated with a shorter intubation length (RR, 0.929; 95% CI, 0.869-0.992). Restricting to high-volume centers showed a significant interaction between age and intubation route with a risk change for infection occurring between approximately 6-12 months of age (P = .003).While older children undergoing nasal intubation trend similar to the adult population with an increased risk of infection, nasal intubation in neonates and infants does not appear to carry a similar risk. Nasal intubation in neonates and infants may also be associated with a shorter intubation length but not a shorter length of stay. Prospective studies are required to better understand these complex associations.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Airway Management in a Patient with Wolf-Hirschhorn Syndrome.
    (Case Rep Pediatr, 2016) Gamble, John F; Kurian, Dinesh J; Udani, Andrea G; Greene, Nathaniel H
    We present a case of a 3-month-old female with Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome (WHS) undergoing general anesthesia for laparoscopic gastrostomy tube placement with a focus on airway management. WHS is a rare 4p microdeletion syndrome resulting in multiple congenital abnormalities, including craniofacial deformities. Microcephaly, micrognathia, and glossoptosis are common features in WHS patients and risk factors for a pediatric airway that is potentially difficult to intubate. We discuss anesthesia strategies for airway preparation and management in a WHS patient requiring general anesthesia with endotracheal intubation.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Complete Obstruction of Endotracheal Tube in an Infant with a Retropharyngeal and Anterior Mediastinal Abscess.
    (Case Rep Pediatr, 2017) Thapa, Dennis B; Greene, Nathaniel H; Udani, Andrea G
    Intraoperative ventilatory failure is not an uncommon complication; however, acute endotracheal obstruction by a foreign body or blood clot can be difficult to quickly discriminate from other causes. Once the diagnosis is made, quick action is needed to restore ventilation. The ultimate solution is to exchange the endotracheal tube; however, there can be other ways of resolving this in situations where reintubation would be difficult or unsafe. This case report discusses such an event in an infant with multiple airway challenges including a retropharyngeal and anterior mediastinal abscess. We have also formulated a pathway based on various case reports involving complete ETT obstruction.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Modern and Evolving Understanding of Cerebral Perfusion and Autoregulation
    (Advances in Anesthesia, 2012-11-16) Greene, Nathaniel H; Lee, Lorri A
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Perioperative management of carotid endarterectomy: A survey of clinicians' backgrounds and practices
    (Journal of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia, 2014-01-01) Greene, Nathaniel H; Minhaj, Mohammed M; Zaky, Ahmed F; Rozet, Irene
    Objective To examine current trends in anesthetic practice for management of carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and how practice may differ by groups of practitioners. Design An online survey was sent to the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists and Society of Neuroscience, Anesthesiology, and Critical Care e-mail list servers. Responses were voluntary. Setting Academic medical centers and community-based hospitals providing perioperative care for a CEA in the United States and abroad. Participants Anesthesiologists who provide perioperative care for patients undergoing a CEA. Interventions None Measurements and Main Results Of 664 responders (13% response rate), most (66%) had subspecialty training in cardiovascular anesthesiology, had been in practice more than 10 years (68%), and practiced in the United States (US, 81%). About 75% of responders considered general anesthesia as a preferable technique for CA, and about 89% of responders provided it in real life, independent of subspecialty training. The most preferable intraoperative neuromonitoring was cerebral oximetry (28%), followed by EEG (24%), and having an awake patient (23%). Neuroprotection was not considered by 33% of responders, and upon conclusion of a case, 59% preferred an awake patient for extubation, while 15% preferred a deep extubation. Neuroanesthesiologists and non-US responders more often risk stratify patients for perioperative cerebral hyperperfusion syndrome, compared with cardiac anesthesiologists and US responders (p = 0.004 and p<0.005, respectively). Additionally, reported management strategies vary substantially from anesthetic practice 20 years ago. Conclusions Although there are areas of perioperative management in which there seems to be agreement for the CEA, there are also areas of divergent practice that could represent potential for improvement in overall outcomes. There are many potential reasons to explain divergence in practice by location or subspecialty training, but it remains unclear what the "best practice" may be. Future studies examining outcomes after carotid endarterectomy should include perioperative anesthetic management strategies to help delineate "best practice." © 2014 Elsevier Inc.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Systematic Postoperative Nausea Prophylaxis Feedback Improves Clinical Performance in Anesthesiology Residents.
    (J Educ Perioper Med, 2015-07) Greene, Nathaniel H; Norstedt, Peter A; Nair, Bala G; Souter, Karen J
    BACKGROUND: Electronic medical records can generate a wealth of information regarding compliance with perioperative clinical guidelines as well as patient outcomes. Utilizing this information to provide resident physicians with measures of their own clinical performance may positively impact residents' clinical performance. We hypothesize that providing residents with objective measures of their individual adherence to evidence based postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) management protocols will improve their compliance with standardized treatment methods. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective baseline analysis of junior anesthesiology residents' compliance with PONV prophylaxis guidelines for high-risk patients. This was followed by a prospective cohort study, before and after an educational intervention, a 15 minute lecture on PONV prophylaxis. The number of pharmacologic prophylactic interventions were tabulated for each operative case and reported back to individual residents in blind and anonymous fashion. The primary outcome was the use of two or more prophylactic interventions for a high-risk patient, while the secondary outcome was the use of three or more prophylactic interventions. A follow up survey was administered to participating residents regarding the use of their individualized clinical performance. RESULTS: After implementation of feedback, patients received a significantly higher amount of PONV prophylactic treatments (p=0.001, means of 1.35 vs. 1.99). Comparison of percentage compliance was 38% vs 73%, respectively (p<0.001). In a follow up survey, residents received the feedback intervention well and had no significant concern in the dissemination of deidentified performance outcomes publically. CONCLUSIONS: Resident compliance with PONV treatment guidelines was improved merely by auditing performance and providing individualized feedback. High-risk patients appear to receive more prophylactic agents after performance feedback and may be more effective than a more commonly used educational intervention to address the same topic. Providing direct performance feedback may be a useful tool for integration into graduate medical education programs.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Validation of ICDPIC software injury severity scores using a large regional trauma registry.
    (Inj Prev, 2015-10) Greene, Nathaniel H; Kernic, Mary A; Vavilala, Monica S; Rivara, Frederick P
    BACKGROUND: Administrative or quality improvement registries may or may not contain the elements needed for investigations by trauma researchers. International Classification of Diseases Program for Injury Categorisation (ICDPIC), a statistical program available through Stata, is a powerful tool that can extract injury severity scores from ICD-9-CM codes. We conducted a validation study for use of the ICDPIC in trauma research. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort validation study of 40,418 patients with injury using a large regional trauma registry. ICDPIC-generated AIS scores for each body region were compared with trauma registry AIS scores (gold standard) in adult and paediatric populations. A separate analysis was conducted among patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) comparing the ICDPIC tool with ICD-9-CM embedded severity codes. Performance in characterising overall injury severity, by the ISS, was also assessed. RESULTS: The ICDPIC tool generated substantial correlations in thoracic and abdominal trauma (weighted κ 0.87-0.92), and in head and neck trauma (weighted κ 0.76-0.83). The ICDPIC tool captured TBI severity better than ICD-9-CM code embedded severity and offered the advantage of generating a severity value for every patient (rather than having missing data). Its ability to produce an accurate severity score was consistent within each body region as well as overall. CONCLUSIONS: The ICDPIC tool performs well in classifying injury severity and is superior to ICD-9-CM embedded severity for TBI. Use of ICDPIC demonstrates substantial efficiency and may be a preferred tool in determining injury severity for large trauma datasets, provided researchers understand its limitations and take caution when examining smaller trauma datasets.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Variation in Inpatient Rehabilitation Utilization After Hospitalization for Burn Injury in the United States.
    (J Burn Care Res, 2015-11) Greene, Nathaniel H; Pham, Tam N; Esselman, Peter C; Rivara, Frederick P
    Approximately 45,000 individuals are hospitalized annually for burn treatment. Rehabilitation after hospitalization can offer a significant improvement in functional outcomes. Very little is known nationally about rehabilitation for burns, and practices may vary substantially depending on the region based on observed Medicare post-hospitalization spending amounts. This study was designed to measure variation in rehabilitation utilization by state of hospitalization for patients hospitalized with burn injury. This retrospective cohort study used nationally collected data over a 10-year period (2001 to 2010), from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) State Inpatient Databases (SIDs). Patients hospitalized for burn injury (n = 57,968) were identified by ICD-9-CM codes and were examined to see specifically if they were discharged immediately to inpatient rehabilitation after hospitalization (primary endpoint). Both unadjusted and adjusted likelihoods were calculated for each state taking into account the effects of age, insurance status, hospitalization at a burn center, and extent of burn injury by TBSA. The relative risk of discharge to inpatient rehabilitation varied by as much as 6-fold among different states. Higher TBSA, having health insurance, higher age, and burn center hospitalization all increased the likelihood of discharge to inpatient rehabilitation following acute care hospitalization. There was significant variation between states in inpatient rehabilitation utilization after adjusting for variables known to affect each outcome. Future efforts should be focused on identifying the cause of this state-to-state variation, its relationship to patient outcome, and standardizing treatment across the United States.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Variation in pediatric traumatic brain injury outcomes in the United States.
    (Arch Phys Med Rehabil, 2014-06) Greene, Nathaniel H; Kernic, Mary A; Vavilala, Monica S; Rivara, Frederick P
    OBJECTIVE: To ascertain the degree of variation, by state of hospitalization, in outcomes associated with traumatic brain injury (TBI) in a pediatric population. DESIGN: A retrospective cohort study of pediatric patients admitted to a hospital with a TBI. SETTING: Hospitals from states in the United States that voluntarily participate in the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality's Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project. PARTICIPANTS: Pediatric (age ≤ 19 y) patients hospitalized for TBI (N=71,476) in the United States during 2001, 2004, 2007, and 2010. INTERVENTIONS: None. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Primary outcome was proportion of patients discharged to rehabilitation after an acute care hospitalization among alive discharges. The secondary outcome was inpatient mortality. RESULTS: The relative risk of discharge to inpatient rehabilitation varied by as much as 3-fold among the states, and the relative risk of inpatient mortality varied by as much as nearly 2-fold. In the United States, approximately 1981 patients could be discharged to inpatient rehabilitation care if the observed variation in outcomes was eliminated. CONCLUSIONS: There was significant variation between states in both rehabilitation discharge and inpatient mortality after adjusting for variables known to affect each outcome. Future efforts should be focused on identifying the cause of this state-to-state variation, its relationship to patient outcome, and standardizing treatment across the United States.