Carbon dioxide levels of ventilated adult critically ill post-operative patients on arrival to the intensive care unit

Abstract

Background. The transportation of critically ill patients presents a precarious situation in which adverse events may occur. At Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital (CHBAH) patients were manually ventilated using a manual resuscitator bag during transportation from theatre to the intensive care unit (ICU). Objectives. To evaluate the arterial partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PaCO2) levels of ventilated adult critically ill post-operative patients on arrival at the ICU at CHBAH. Methods. This was a cross-sectional study using convenience sampling. Pre- and post-transportation arterial blood gases were obtained from 47 patients. Results. There was a statistically significant difference in the pre- and post-transport PaCO2 level (p=0.03), with a mean difference of 3.3 mmHg. The pre- and post-transport arterial partial pressure of oxygen (PaO2) level (p≤0.001) and the week and weekend pre-transport (p≤0.001) and post-transport (p=0.01) PaCO2 were statistically significantly different. No statistically significant difference was found in the other arterial blood gas parameters or in the post-transport PaCO2 of those patients (26 (55.3%)), who received a neuromuscular blocking drug compared with those that did not. Adverse events were noted during 12 (25.6%) of the transports, 5 (41.7%) of which were patient-related, and 7 (58.3%) of which were infrastructure-related. Conclusion. There was a statistically but not clinically significant difference in the pre- and post-transport PaCO2 level and between week and weekend transportations. Hypercarbia was the most common derangement in all transports. Adverse events occurred during one-quarter of transportations. Keywords: manual resuscitation bag ventilation, transportation of critically ill patients, carbon dioxide levels

Keywords

• manual resuscitation bag ventilation
• transportation of critically ill patients
• carbon dioxide levels