Anesthesia Study Targets Risk Factors in Obese Children
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In the first large-scale study of its kind, investigators from the University of Michigan have discovered that obese children, when compared to normal weight children, have a significantly higher prevalence of pre-existing medical conditions and subsequently experience more problems during and after surgery.
The study, authored by Alan R. Tait, Ph.D., and colleagues, evaluated 2,025 children, ages 2 to 18 years, and offers important insight into the effects of obesity on respiratory problems in children undergoing non-cardiac surgery.
Dr. Tait and his research group found that obese children came to surgery with much higher rates of asthma, hypertension, sleep apnea and diabetes.
“Although some might dismiss these results as being intuitively obvious, this kind of patient information is crucial for anesthesiologists to know,” said Dr. Tait. “Every individual responds to anesthesia in different and subtle ways, so the more we know about a particular type of patient, the better we are able to give a safe and effective anesthetic.”
The study’s results will help to alert clinicians to potential problems in obese children, such as difficultly ventilating the patients’ lungs when using a mask airway, frank obstruction of the airway and difficulty ensuring adequate oxygen content in the blood. Recognition of these specific potential problems will encourage clinicians to use pre-emptive therapies such as supplementary oxygen and postoperative respiratory monitoring, Dr. Tait said.
Although previous studies have examined the effects of obesity on anesthetic outcomes in adults, until Dr. Tait’s study, there has been limited research done in this area on children. Considering recent trends in obesity, the results of this research should be applicable to a considerable number of patients requiring anesthesia for surgery.
“It has been estimated that more than 15 percent of children and adolescents in the United States are obese – this is an approximate three-fold increase over the last 30 years,” Dr. Tait said. “Furthermore, this increase in childhood obesity is not restricted to the United States and has become a major medical and societal issue worldwide.”
Although children classified as obese in this study experienced more anesthesia-related respiratory problems, none of them experienced serious long-term complications.
Dr. Tait’s study results will bolster an already strong sense of vigilance among anesthesiologists and other practitioners regarding a type of patient who is at increased risk during anesthesia and surgery. Steps to improve outcomes should include screening of obese children to identify and treat significant co-morbidities and, in the long term, the attempt to reduce their weight through a program of diet and exercise.
For more information visit the Anesthesiology Web site at http://www.anesthesiology.org.
Founded in 1905, the American Society of Anesthesiologists is an educational, research and scientific association with 43,000 members organized to raise and maintain the standards of the medical practice of anesthesiology and improve the care of the patient.
Source: American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA)
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