Utilidad del Integrated Pulmonary Index (IPI) en la Unidad de Reanimación Postanestésica (URPA)

Abstract

Respiratory complications occur in 10-20% of patients in the immediate postoperative period and represent the most frequent perioperative complication. Patient-associated factors, such as age or comorbidities, and the anesthetic-surgical procedure, such as duration, type of surgery and degree of urgency, are associated with the appearance of these complications. From a pathophysiological point of view, the alteration of ventilatory mechanics in major surgery, the residual effect of medications used for anesthesia and other metabolic alterations, triggered by the state of disease or surgical aggression, may play a role in this process. Respiration aims to oxygenate the blood, while removing CO2 produced during aerobic metabolism. In the postoperative period, hypoxemia frequently occurs as a result of ventilation/perfusion changes, such as those that occur in the presence of atelectasis, which lead to shunt; while hypercapnia reflects a reduction in alveolar ventilation, commonly related to global hypoventilation in the context of sedation or residual neuromuscular blockade. Likewise, those situations in which there is an increase in the ventilation/perfusion ratio (dead space) will favor the appearance of hypercapnia if there is not enough compensatory increase in minute volume. In addition, it should be borne in mind that not only respiratory alterations can result in an increase in dead space, but the fall in cardiac output can favor the appearance of this effect due to the inability to provide adequate blood flow to all ventilated portions of the lung. Given the impact of complications on prognosis, early detection of these alterations through continuous monitoring can potentially improve clinical outcomes.