Practice of oxygen use in anesthesiology – a survey of the European Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care

• Published in: BMC anesthesiology Vol. 22; no. 1; pp. 350 - 11
• Main Authors: Scharffenberg, Martin, Weiss, Thomas, Wittenstein, Jakob, Krenn, Katharina, Fleming, Magdalena, Biro, Peter, De Hert, Stefan, Hendrickx, Jan F. A., Ionescu, Daniela, de Abreu, Marcelo Gama
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London BioMed Central 14.11.2022; BioMed Central Ltd; BMC
• Subjects: Anesthesia; Anesthesiology; Cerebral infarction; Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; Critical Care; Critical Care Medicine; Emergency medical care; Emergency Medicine; Hospitals; Humans; Inspiratory fraction of oxygen; Intensive; Intensive care; Intensive care medicine; Internal Medicine; Lung diseases; Lung diseases, Obstructive; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Myocardial infarction; Obstructive lung disease; Oxygen; Oxygen therapy; Patient safety; Patients; Perioperative care; Questionnaires; Respiration; Supplemental oxygen; Surgical site infections; Surveys; Surveys and Questionnaires; Toxicity; Trade and professional associations; Europe; WHO guidelines on surgical site infection prevention; Perioperative care; Oxygen therapy; Oxygen toxicity; Supplemental oxygen; Patient safety; Intensive care medicine; Inspiratory fraction of oxygen; Critical emergency medicine
• ISSN: 1471-2253; 1471-2253
• DOI: 10.1186/s12871-022-01884-2

Background Oxygen is one of the most commonly used drugs by anesthesiologists. The World Health Organization (WHO) gave recommendations regarding perioperative oxygen administration, but the practice of oxygen use in anesthesia, critical emergency, and intensive care medicine remains unclear. Methods We conducted an online survey among members of the European Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care (ESAIC). The questionnaire consisted of 46 queries appraising the perioperative period, emergency medicine and in the intensive care, knowledge about current recommendations by the WHO, oxygen toxicity, and devices for supplemental oxygen therapy. Results Seven hundred ninety-eight ESAIC members (2.1% of all ESAIC members) completed the survey. Most respondents were board-certified and worked in hospitals with > 500 beds. The majority affirmed that they do not use specific protocols for oxygen administration. WHO recommendations are unknown to 42% of respondents, known but not followed by 14%, and known and followed by 24% of them. Respondents prefer inspiratory oxygen fraction (FiO 2 ) ≥80% during induction and emergence from anesthesia, but intraoperatively < 60% for maintenance, and higher FiO 2 in patients with diseased than non-diseased lungs. Postoperative oxygen therapy is prescribed more commonly according to peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO 2 ), but shortage of devices still limits monitoring. When monitoring is used, SpO 2  ≤ 95% is often targeted. In critical emergency medicine, oxygen is used frequently in patients aged ≥80 years, or presenting with respiratory distress, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, myocardial infarction, and stroke. In the intensive care unit, oxygen is mostly targeted at 96%, especially in patients with pulmonary diseases. Conclusions The current practice of perioperative oxygen therapy among respondents does not follow WHO recommendations or current evidence, and access to postoperative monitoring devices impairs the individualization of oxygen therapy. Further research and additional teaching about use of oxygen are necessary.