High Thoracic Epidural Analgesia and Cardiac Performance

We read with interest the recent paper of CJ Jakobsen et al regarding high thoracic epidural analgesia (HTEA) in cardiac surgery. They studied 60 low-risk patients between 65 and 80 years of age scheduled for elective coronary artery bypass graft surgery with or without HTEA. They thought HTEA improved perioperative cardiac performance both before and after cardiopulmonary bypass, shown by a higher stroke volume index and cardiac index without increases in heart rate or mean arterial pressure. But we do not think so.
Source: Journal of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia - Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Tags: Letters to the Editor Source Type: research