Risks and benefits of spirometry in preoperative assessment for the surgical repair of abdominal aortic aneurysm

Abstract

Since 2019, spirometry is no longer contraindicated in patients with an aneurysm of the abdominal aorta (AAA). Lung function testing has therefore become a tool for the preoperative morbidity and mortality assessment of patients eligible for surgical repair of AAA. European guidelines of anesthesiology, vascular surgery and pneumology, recommend preoperative spirometry for polymorbide patients, for whom the preoperative assessment must be as complete as possible in order to improve perioperative management and to help specialists decide of the operative mode: open (for patients with a low-risk profile) or endovascular (preferred in high-risk profile patients).