Using our new hypothermia risk predicting scale in body contouring

SDCC 

Introduction. Today, liposuction is positioned as the most frequent surgery in the world. Body contouring procedures are evolving every day and a new generation of specialists is actively using new methods that have been established in the world practice of plastic surgery, moving beyond traditional methods of removing excess skin and fat deposits. Nowadays there is a tendency to solve complex problems of body aesthetics, restoring the figure in one visit to a plastic surgeon, undergoing more complex procedures and therefore with higher risks. Hypothermia occurs in 50-90% of cases during such operations. Referred as the "hidden enemy", hypothermia is a modifiable risk factor, usually unnoticed, that increases the risk of other complications such as bleeding, infections, need for transfusion and longer recovery periods, even cardiac complications. Therefore, predicting the risk of hypothermia when performing body contouring surgery is an urgent task.
Aims: The aim of this is study is to improve the safety and outcomes of complex body contouring surgeries, including liposuction and lipofilling, by developing a system for predicting the risk of hypothermia for each patient before surgery.
Methods. A retrospective and prospective analysis of the data from 100 patients undergoing liposuction, lipofilling and/or abdominoplasty from 2020 to 2023 was carried out. The objective research methods implemented included: thermometry and capillaroscopy. The patients were classified in four groups depending on the complexity of the surgery. The temperature was measured during every step of the surgery and/or every 30 minutes. The data was compared with the data obtained from patients undergoing facial and breast surgery, to assess the difference between groups.
Results. Based on the results of the analysis, a unified system for predicting hypothermia in patients undergoing programmed complex body contouring surgery was developed and applied in clinical practice for the first time in Russia. Preliminary warming of the patient, air temperature in the operating room, isolation and limitation of the exposed body surface area, temperature of solutions for subcutaneous infiltration, temperature of solutions for intravenous administration and heating of the operating table were some of the factors included.
Conclusion. Using a comprehensive patient body hypothermia risk prediction scale, the hypothermia risk can be effectively predicted and prevented by adopting specific measures during the perioperative period. The implementation of this decision support tool into the everyday practice of medical institutions of the Russian Federation has helped to improve the safety and quality of complex body contouring surgeries.

Aesthetic

PSTM 2024