SpecialtyCare Cardioplegia Research Presented at AmSECT – AATS Meeting

June 1, 2017

To strengthen alignment among multiple surgical disciplines, the American Society of ExtraCorporeal Technology (AmSECT) and the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) teamed up to present a terrific joint learning opportunity, holding AmSECT’s 55^th International Conference in conjunction with the Centennial Meeting of the AATS in Boston. The integrated program was designed to improve care by bringing surgeons, perfusionists, and other experts together in a combined learning environment that emphasized effective communication and coordination in the operating room.

Members of our Medical Office presented three new research studies. Linda B. Mongero, CCP, Director of Education and Clinical Performance, shared original research that compares the effect of two distinct cardioplegia solutions on intraoperative glucose levels. The review looks at 1,188 propensity-matched cases in which del Nido and 4:1 cardioplegia were used. The procedures were performed from January through October 2016 at 17 cardiac surgical centers across the United States.

Cardioplegia was also the focus of a second study presented by Al Stammers, MSA, CCP, Director of Clinical Quality and Outcomes Research. The analysis looks at commonly utilized cardioplegia solutions to determine whether the type of cardioplegic technique influences hemodilution and transfusion requirements. This work is based on 16,670 adult patients undergoing cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass between February 2016 and January 2017.

We invite you to read the abstracts of these studies, which were derived from case data in SCOPE, the SpecialtyCare Operative Procedural Registry™. In the coming weeks, we will post the results from a third research project presented at the meeting by Andy Stasko, CCP, MS, RRT, Associate Director of Clinical Quality and Outcomes Research. The work reviews the impact of intraoperative autotransfusion on postoperative hematocrit following cardiac surgery.

It was a privilege to present our findings to the members of AmSECT and AATS. The combined meeting was a great example of collaboration that advances the quality of patient care through evidence-based learning and improvement. Congratulations to both organizations on a successful event. We are proud to have been part of it.

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