Impact of Immediate Versus Delayed Tracheal Extubation on Length of ICU Stay of Cardiac Surgical Patients

Ultra-fast track anaesthesia (UFTA) aims at immediate extubation of cardiac surgical patients at the end of the operation. This study compares the effect of UFTA versus continued postoperative mechanical ventilation on the ICU length of stay (LOS). Methods. Fifty two elective adult patients were randomly allocated into UFTA and conventional groups by computer-generated random numbers. Redo operations, pre-operative intubation, uncontrolled diabetes, shock/LVEF \55mmHg, creatinine clearance \<50 ml min-1, haemodynamic instability, or those with concerns of postoperative bleeding were excluded. Pre- and intra-operative management was similar and Logistic EuroSCORE II was calculated for all. Intra-operatively, haemodynamic parameters, urine output, SPO2, arterial blood gas analysis (ABG), 5-lead ECG, operative- bypass- and cross clamp time, and opioid consumption were collected. Postoperatively, patients were compared during their ICU stay. Data were analysed by χ²/Fischer exact, unpaired student's t-test, univariate two-group repeated measures ANOVA with post hoc Dunnett's test, and Mann-Whitney U tests as appropriate. p\<0.05 was considered significant.