Editor’s Perspective What We Already Know about This Topic What This Article Tells Us That Is New Background Intraoperative and postoperative hypotension are associated with myocardial and kidney injury and 30-day mortality. Intraoperative blood pressure is measured frequently, but blood pressure on surgical wards is usually measured only every 4 to 6 h, leaving long intervals during which hypotension and hypertension may be undetected. This study evaluated the incidence and severity of postoperative hypotension and hypertension in adults recovering from abdominal surgery and the extent to which serious perturbations were missed by routine vital-sign assessments. Methods Blood pressure was recorded at 1-min intervals during the initial 48 h in adults recovering from abdominal surgery using a continuous noninvasive monitor. Caregivers were blinded to these measurements and depended on routine vital-sign assessments. Hypotension and hypertension were characterized as time under and above various mean arterial pressure thresholds. Results Of 502 available patients, 312 patients with high-quality records were analyzed, with a median measurement time of 48 [interquartile range: 41, 48] postoperative hours. Nearly a quarter experienced an episode of mean arterial pressure of less than 70 mm Hg lasting at least 30 min (24%; 95% CI, 20%, 29%), and 18% had an episode of mean arterial pressure of less than 65 mm Hg lasting at least 15 min. Nearly half the patients who had mean arterial pressure of less than 65 mm Hg for at least 15 min (47%; 95% CI, 34%, 61%) were undetected by routine vital-sign assessments. Episodes of mean arterial pressure greater than 110 mm Hg lasting at least 30 min were observed in 42% (95% CI, 37%, 48%) of patients; 7% had mean arterial pressure greater than 130 mm Hg for at least 30 min, 96% of which were missed by routine assessments. Episodes of mean arterial pressure less than 65 mm Hg and mean arterial pressure greater than 110 mm Hg captured by routine vital-sign assessments but not by continuous monitoring occurred in 34 and 8 patients, respectively. Conclusions Postoperative hypotension and hypertension were common, prolonged, profound, and largely undetected by routine vital-sign assessments in a cohort of adults recovering from abdominal surgery. Frequent or continuous blood pressure monitoring may detect hemodynamic perturbations more effectively and potentially facilitate treatment.

for the FACTOR Study Group IMPORTANCE Opioid-induced ventilatory depression and hypoxemia is common, severe, and often unrecognized in postoperative patients. To the extent that nonopioid analgesics reduce opioid consumption, they may decrease postoperative hypoxemia.OBJECTIVE To test the hypothesis that duration of hypoxemia is less in patients given intravenous acetaminophen than those given placebo. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial conducted at 2 US academic hospitals among 570 patients who were undergoing abdominal surgery, enrolled from February 2015 through October 2018 and followed up until February 2019.INTERVENTIONS Participants were randomized to receive either intravenous acetaminophen, 1 g (n = 289), or normal saline placebo (n = 291) starting at the beginning of surgery and repeated every 6 hours until 48 postoperative hours or hospital discharge, whichever occurred first. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURESThe primary outcome was the total duration of hypoxemia (hemoglobin oxygen saturation [SpO 2 ] <90%) per hour, with oxygen saturation measured continuously for 48 postoperative hours. Secondary outcomes were postoperative opioid consumption, pain (0-10-point scale; 0: no pain; 10: the most pain imaginable), nausea and vomiting, sedation, minimal alveolar concentration of volatile anesthetic, fatigue, active time, and respiratory function.RESULTS Among 580 patients randomized (mean age, 49 years; 48% women), 570 (98%) completed the trial. The primary outcome, median duration with SpO 2 of less than 90%, was 0.7 (interquartile range [IQR], 0.1-5.1) minutes per hour among patients in the acetaminophen group and 1.1 (IQR, 0.1-6.6) minutes per hour among patients in the placebo group (P = .29), with an estimated median difference of −0.04 (95% CI,−0.18 to 0.11) minutes per hour. None of the 8 secondary end points differed significantly between the acetaminophen and placebo groups. Mean pain scores within initial 48 postoperative hours were 4.2 (SD, 1.8) in the acetaminophen group and 4.4 (SD, 1.8) in the placebo group (difference, −0.28; 95% CI, -0.71 to 0.15); median opioid use in morphine equivalents was 50 mg (IQR, 18-122 mg) and 58 mg (IQR, 24-151 mg) , respectively, with a ratio of geometric means of 0.86 (95% CI, 0.61-1.21).CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Among patients who underwent abdominal surgery, use of postoperative intravenous acetaminophen, compared with placebo, did not significantly reduce the duration of postoperative hypoxemia over 48 hours. The study findings do not support the use of intravenous acetaminophen for this purpose.

Pyogenic liver abscess (PLA) is an uncommon condition, which requires early diagnosis and treatment, due to high mortality, morbidity if left untreated. The incidence rate 3.6 per 100.000 populations with overall mortality 0.2 per 100.000 populations in the United States. Predisposing factors for PLA development were immune deficiency, parasitic invasion, genetic disorders (Papillon-Leferve syndrome, Chronic Granulomatous Disease), abdominal infection [4] and abdominal trauma. The most common cultured bacteria in the last population group were Streptococcus species 29.5%, E.coli 18.1% and 16.3% polymicrobial. Here we report a case of PLA secondary due to Fusobacterium nucleatum in an otherwise healthy adolescent male with no definitive source of infection (cryptogenic). PLA is very rare and to date there is no case reports published with Fusobacterium nucleatum being the causative pathogen in pediatrics (only 13 adult cases have been reported).

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