A Survey of Current Anesthesia Trends for Electrophysiology Procedures

BACKGROUND: There has been a dramatic shift in recent years in anesthesia coverage for electrophysiology (EP) procedures. An anesthesiologist and electrophysiologist at our institution jointly developed a survey, which was distributed to the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists and the Heart Rhythm Society. Its goal was to document current practice patterns and examine perceived variability in coverage. METHODS: On approval of the leadership from the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists and the Heart Rhythm Society, an online survey was administered to the membership. The survey included demographic data, anesthetic type, and perceptions of the respondents. RESULTS: Four hundred seventy-nine surveys were completed. Thirty-eight percent were completed by electrophysiologists and 63% by anesthesiologists, giving a response rate of 8.24% for anesthesiologists and 13.6% for electrophysiologists. Of these, 57% of respondents worked in an academic setting. Over the past 2 years, 66.5% of respondents reported anesthesia involvement in EP cases increasing. These cases are reportedly covered by all anesthesiologists in a group 55% of the time, cardiac anesthesia 32.5%, and a designated team at the remainder of the institutions. Seventy-six percent of respondents reported having designated EP block time in the schedule. Ninety-two percent of respondents reported that patient satisfaction has increased with the involvement of anesthesia services. CONCLUSIONS: Anesthesia coverage for EP procedures has continued to increase with an increase in patient satisfaction. Anesthesiologists have had to adapt and provide designated block time to accommodate this increase and also, in some instances, form teams that go beyond simply cardiac anesthesiologists to care for these patients during their procedures. Accepted for publication March 6, 2018. Funding: None. The authors declare no conflicts of interest. Reprints will not be available from the authors. Address correspondence to Eric W. Nelson, DO, Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, 25 Courtenay Dr, Suite 4200, MSC 240, Charleston, SC 29425. Address e-mail to nelsonew@musc.edu. © 2018 International Anesthesia Research Society

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