Thankfully, the operative site of a fractured hip is well away find more from respiratory muscles and by itself is unlikely to interfere with breathing in the postoperative period unlike thoracic or abdominal surgery. Patients

with marginal pulmonary reserves may still proceed to surgery provided there is adequate availability of postoperative monitoring, pulmonary rehabilitation and ventilator support if required. Preoperative cardiac risk stratification The use of consensus guidelines Excellent guidelines are available to assist with preoperative cardiac risk evaluation and decision making [17, 18]; however, it is recognized that there may be times when difficulties may arise in following these guidelines. There may be differences in availability of expertise or resources in different institutions. There may also be patient-related limitations such as difficulty in obtaining an accurate functional status from elderly patients with limited mobility. They may not be stressed to the point of cardiac ischemia in their daily life and is therefore “asymptomatic”. Nevertheless, the spirit selleck chemicals of the guidelines

should apply and is summed up in this statement: “The overriding theme of this document is that intervention is rarely necessary to simply lower the risk of surgery unless such intervention is indicated irrespective of the preoperative context. The purpose of preoperative evaluation is not to give Go6983 nmr medical clearance but rather to perform an evaluation of the patient’s current medical status; make recommendations concerning the evaluation, management, and risk of cardiac problems over the entire perioperative period;

and provide a clinical risk profile that the patient, primary physician and non-physician caregivers, anaesthesiologist, and surgeon can use in making treatment decisions that may influence short- and long-term cardiac outcomes. No test should be performed unless it is likely to influence patient treatment. The goal of the consultation is the optimal care Baf-A1 order of the patient.”[18] Important cardiac conditions requiring evaluation Accordingly, those with unstable coronary syndromes, such as unstable or severe angina or a recent myocardial infarction (7 days to 1 month), decompensated heart failure, significant arrhythmias (including supraventricular arrhythmias with ventricular rate above 100, high-grade atrioventricular heart blocks) and severe valvular disease should undergo cardiac evaluation. Evaluation should also be performed where uncertainty exists over the diagnosis (e.g. dyspnoea of unknown origin) and for those with pacemakers (to review its indication, evaluate the battery life and resetting the mode if indicated). The purpose of these consultations is to confirm diagnosis, delineate the severity of the disease and whether there is any room for improvement with medical treatment in light of the clinical findings and not to obtain a medical clearance for anaesthesia from our physician colleagues.