Effect of Hemodynamic Changes in Plasma Propofol Concentrations Associated with Knee-Chest Position in Spinal Surgery: A Prospective Study

Daniela Chalo; Sara Pedrosa; Pedro Amorim; Aura Silva; Paula Guedes de Pinho; Rui Correia; Sonia Gouveia; Consuelo Sancho

doi:10.5812/aapm.96829

Effect of Hemodynamic Changes in Plasma Propofol Concentrations Associated with Knee-Chest Position in Spinal Surgery: A Prospective Study

Anesth Pain Med. 2019 Sep 24;9(5):e96829. doi: 10.5812/aapm.96829. eCollection 2019 Oct.

Authors

Daniela Chalo^{1

2}, Sara Pedrosa², Pedro Amorim³, Aura Silva⁴, Paula Guedes de Pinho⁴, Rui Correia⁵, Sonia Gouveia^{6

7}, Consuelo Sancho⁸

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Neurosciences of Castilla y Leon, INCyL, IBSAL, University of Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain.
² Anesthesiology Department, Centro Hospitalar do Baixo Vouga, Aveiro, Portugal.
³ Anesthesiology Department, Centro Hospitalar do Porto, Porto, Portugal.
⁴ UCIBIO-REQUIMTE, Toxicology Laboratory, Biological Sciences Department, Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Porto, Porto, Portugal.
⁵ Anesthesiology Department, Anesthesiology Centre for Investigation, Centro Hospitalar do Porto, Porto, Portugal.
⁶ Institute of Electronics and Informatics Engineering of Aveiro (IEETA), University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal.
⁷ Center for R&D in Mathematics and Applications (CIDMA), University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal.
⁸ Physiology and Pharmacology Department, INCyL, IBSAL, University of Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain.

Abstract

Background: Anesthesia induction and maintenance with propofol can be guided by target-controlled infusion (TCI) systems using pharmacokinetic (Pk) models. Physiological variables, such as changes in cardiac output (CO), can influence propofol pharmacokinetics. Knee-chest (KC) surgical positioning can result in CO changes.

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between propofol plasma concentration prediction and CO changes after induction and KC positioning.

Methods: This two-phase prospective cohort study included 20 patients scheduled for spinal surgery. Two different TCI anesthesia protocols were administered after induction. In phase I (n = 9), the loss of consciousness (LOC) concentration was set as the propofol target concentration and CO changes following induction and KC positioning were quantified. In phase II (n = 11), based on data from phase I, two reductions in the propofol target concentration on the pump were applied after LOC and before KC positioning. Propofol plasma concentrations were measured at different moments in both phases: after induction and after KC positioning.

Results: Schnider Pk model showed a good performance in predicting propofol concentration after induction; however, after KC positioning, when a significant drop in CO occurred, the measured propofol concentrations were markedly underestimated. Intended reductions in the propofol target concentration did not attenuate HD changes. In the KC position, there was no correlation between the propofol concentration estimated by the Pk model and the measured concentration in plasma, as the latter was much higher (P = 0.013) while CO and BIS decreased significantly (P < 0.001 and P = 0.004, respectively).

Conclusions: Our study showed that the measured propofol plasma concentrations during the KC position were significantly underestimated by the Schnider Pk model and were associated with significant CO decrease. When placing patients in the KC position, anesthesiologists must be aware of pharmacokinetic changes and, in addition to standard monitoring, the use of depth of anesthesia and cardiac output monitors may be considered in high-risk patients.

Keywords: Anesthesia; Hemodynamics; Infusion Pumps; Knee-Chest Position; Propofol Pharmacokinetics.