Volume 131, Issue 3 pp. E792-E799
Head and Neck

ERAS for Head and Neck Tissue Transfer Reduces Opioid Usage, Peak Pain Scores, and Blood Utilization

Bhavishya S. Clark MD

Bhavishya S. Clark MD

Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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Mark Swanson MD

Mark Swanson MD

Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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William Widjaja BS

William Widjaja BS

Department of Anesthesiology, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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Brian Cameron BA

Brian Cameron BA

USC Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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Valerie Yu BS

Valerie Yu BS

Department of Anesthesiology, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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Ksenia Ershova MS, MD

Ksenia Ershova MS, MD

Department of Anesthesiology, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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Franklin M. Wu BA

Franklin M. Wu BA

USC Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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Erik B. Vanstrum BA

Erik B. Vanstrum BA

USC Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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Ruben Ulloa BA

Ruben Ulloa BA

USC Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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Andrew Heng BS

Andrew Heng BS

USC Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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Margaret Nurimba BS

Margaret Nurimba BS

USC Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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Niels Kokot MD

Niels Kokot MD

Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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Amit Kochhar MD

Amit Kochhar MD

Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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Uttam K. Sinha MD

Uttam K. Sinha MD

Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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M. P. Kim DO

M. P. Kim DO

Department of Anesthesiology, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

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Shane Dickerson MD

Corresponding Author

Shane Dickerson MD

Department of Anesthesiology, Mount Sinai Hospital, New York, New York, U.S.A.

Send correspondence to Shane Dickerson, MD, Department of Anesthesiology, Mount Sinai Hospital, 1 Gustave L. Levy Place, Box 1010, New York, NY 10029. Email: [email protected]Search for more papers by this author
First published: 09 June 2020
Citations: 21

Editor's Note: This Manuscript was accepted for publication on May 5, 2020.

The authors have no funding, financial relationships, or conflicts of interest to disclose.

Abstract

Objectives

We implement a novel enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocol with pre-operative non-opioid loading, total intravenous anesthesia, multimodal peri-operative analgesia, and restricted red blood cell (pRBC) transfusions. 1) Compare differences in mean postoperative peak pain scores, opioid usage, and pRBC transfusions. 2) Examine changes in overall length of stay (LOS), intensive care unit LOS, complications, and 30-day readmissions.

Methods

Retrospective cohort study comparing 132 ERAS vs. 66 non-ERAS patients after HNC tissue transfer reconstruction. Data was collected in a double-blind fashion by two teams.

Results

Mean postoperative peak pain scores were lower in the ERAS group up to postoperative day (POD) 2. POD0: 4.6 ± 3.6 vs. 6.5 ± 3.5; P = .004) (POD1: 5.2 ± 3.5 vs. 7.3 ± 2.3; P = .002) (POD2: 4.1 ± 3.5 vs. 6.6 ± 2.8; P = .000). Opioid utilization, converted into morphine milligram equivalents, was decreased in the ERAS group (POD0: 6.0 ± 9.8 vs. 10.3 ± 10.8; P = .010) (POD1: 14.1 ± 22.1 vs. 34.2 ± 23.2; P = .000) (POD2: 11.4 ± 19.7 vs. 37.6 ± 31.7; P = .000) (POD3: 13.7 ± 20.5 vs. 37.9 ± 42.3; P = .000) (POD4: 11.7 ± 17.9 vs. 36.2 ± 39.2; P = .000) (POD5: 10.3 ± 17.9 vs. 35.4 ± 45.6; P = .000). Mean pRBC transfusion rate was lower in ERAS patients (2.1 vs. 3.1 units, P = .017). There were no differences between ERAS and non-ERAS patients in hospital LOS, ICU LOS, complication rates, and 30-day readmissions.

Conclusion

Our ERAS pathway reduced postoperative pain, opioid usage, and pRBC transfusions after HNC reconstruction. These benefits were obtained without an increase in hospital or ICU LOS, complications, or readmission rates.

Level of Evidence

3 Laryngoscope, 131:E792–E799, 2021

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