TITLE:
Preliminary Validation of Transcutaneous CO2 Monitoring in Patients Undergoing Cardiac Ablation Using Jet Ventilation
AUTHORS:
Zvi C. Jacob, Roger Fan, Ruth A. Reinsel, Nehul Patel, Arvind Chandrakantan
KEYWORDS:
High Frequency Jet Ventilation, Cardiac Ablation, Transcutaneous CO2 Monitoring, End-Tidal CO2 Monitoring, General Anesthesia
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Anesthesiology,
Vol.7 No.9,
September
27,
2017
ABSTRACT: Objectives: There is no data in the current medical literature on efficacy or accuracy of transcutaneous (tcPCO2) monitoring during jet ventilation for cardiac ablation. The use of tcPCO2 during cardiac ablation procedures offers the opportunity to compare end-tidal and transcutaneous methods of CO2 measurement before and after the use of the jet ventilation. Comparison of these measurements with arterial blood gas CO2 levels allows evaluation of the accuracy of the tcPCO2 technique for use during jet ventilation. Design: Observational study; patients served as their own controls. Setting: Cardiac electrophysiology laboratory. Participants: 15 adult patients (9 M), ASA III-IV, aged 26 to 82 years (median 66 years) undergoing radiofrequency ablation for atrial fibrillation. Interventions: Jet ventilation (JV) versus conventional ventilation. Measurements and Main Results: Paired measurements of end-tidal CO2 (EtCO2) and transcutaneous CO2 (tcPCO2) were recorded during periods of conventional ventilation. Paired measurements of arterial blood CO2 (PaCO2) levels and tcPCO2 were recorded during JV. ABG samples were drawn at the anesthesiologist’s discretion to assess the patient’s respiratory status. The level of agreement between the three methods was compared using the Bland Altman plot. We found that tcPCO2 values consistently provided a close approximation to PaCO2 levels. The mean difference between tcPCO2 and EtCO2 values in baseline and post-JV was on the order of 3 - 5 mmHg, with standard deviation of 4 - 6 mmHg. This is well within the range of variability that is accepted in clinical practice. Conclusions: These preliminary results suggest that tcPCO2 provides an acceptable estimate of CO2 concentration in arterial blood during JV, as well as prior to and following JV.