Sickle cell anemia: Anesthetic implications

Published on 07/02/2015 by admin

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Sickle cell anemia: Anesthetic implications

Barbara E. Switzer, MD and Michael J. Murray, MD, PhD

Sickle cell disease (SCD)—an inherited hemoglobinopathy characterized by erythrocytes that assume a rigid sickle shape under relatively hypoxic conditions—is more prevalent in people who themselves or whose forebearers came from tropical or subtropical sub-Saharan regions with current or previously endemic malaria.

In utero, at the end of the first trimester, erythrocytes contain hemoglobin (Hb)F (α2γ2), which, like HbA (α2β2) and HbA22δ2), is composed of four protein (globin) molecules, each binding one of four hematoporphyrin rings. The P50 of HbF is 19 mm Hg (compared with the P50 of HbA of 26.8 mm Hg), that is, HbF has a higher affinity for O2, which is necessary for the fetus to extract O2 from the placenta and the maternal erythrocytes. Within 6 months of birth, HbF is replaced by adult Hb (HbA), except in individuals with hemoglobinopathies, of which there are close to 300 variants. In people with SCD, the amino acid valine is substituted for glutamic acid in the β-globulin chain. In the United States, approximately 1 in 500 African American children and 2 in 36,000 Hispanic American children have SCD. These children may initially have normal Hb values but, over time, develop anemia (sickle cell anemia [SCA]).

People with SCA, also referred to as HbSS because they have homozygosity for the gene encoding the β chain of hemoglobin (mutant S), develop sickling of erythrocytes in small arterioles at O2 tensions of 40 to 45 mm Hg (the P50 of HbS is approximately 49 mm Hg). However, although hypoxia may cause these cells to “sickle,” the process is far more complex, involving erythrocyte-endothelial cell interactions, viscosity of the blood, and probably cytokines released locally as part of a systemic inflammatory response. Patients with sickle cell trait, also called HbAS because of the heterozygosity for the mutation, can develop sickling of erythrocytes at O2 tensions of 20 to 25 mm Hg. Other, rarer forms of SCD—such as sickle cell–hemoglobin C disease (HbSC), sickle cell–hemoglobin D disease (HbSD), sickle cell β-plus-thalassemia (HbS/β+), and sickle cell β-zero-thalassemia (HbS/β0)—are compound heterozygous states in which the affected individual has only one copy of the mutation that causes HbS and one copy of another abnormal hemoglobin allele. These cells can also “sickle,” but people with these heterozygous conditions tend to have higher Hb levels (approximately 10 g/dL) than do people with HbSS.

Although the term sickle cell crisis is commonly used, in reality, a variety of crises are subsumed under this term, including vaso-occlusive, splenic sequestration, aplastic, and hemolytic crises. Patients with SCA have increased perioperative morbidity and mortality rates, as compared with the general population, likely due to vaso-occlusion from sickled erythrocytes, resulting in acute tissue injury and chronic organ damage (Table 206-1). People with SCA also undergo more operations and at an earlier age; the most commonly performed surgical procedures are cholecystectomy (due to an increased rate of formation of pigmented gallstones and cholelithiasis in this population), splenectomy (because of splenic sequestration and splenic pooling), and hip arthroplasty (related to the 50% rate of osteonecrosis in the femoral head among individuals with SCA who are 35 years of age and older). In addition, postoperative hospital length of stay is typically longer in this population.

Table 206-1

Effects of Vaso-occlusive Insults from Sickled Erythrocytes on Organ Systems in Patients with Sickle Cell Disease

System Effect Cause Finding(s)
Cardiac Cardiomegaly Hyperdynamic circulation Long-term increased cardiac output and gradual occlusion of pulmonary vascular bed Full pulses
Murmurs
Pulmonary ↓ Total lung capacity
↓ Vital capacity
↑ Risk of contracting pneumococcal pneumonia
In patients with SCD, image mismatch and pulmonary sickling add to their likelihood of developing pulmonary infarction and infection perioperatively. When compared with the general population, these patients have a 10-fold higher risk of serious perioperative pulmonary complications. Resting SaO2 70-90 mm Hg
Renal Papillary necrosis and nephrotic syndrome The relatively hypoxic, hypertonic, and acidotic environment in the medulla leads to sickling of RBCs with consequent vaso-occlusion, resulting in decreased renal medullary blood flow.
Hematuria, which often occurs in patients with sickle cell nephropathy, increases venous pressure, further worsening the ischemia of the renal medulla and predisposing the patient to further RBC sickling.
Large dilute urine volume
Hepatic Cirrhosis, hepatitis, hepatic sequestration, hepatosplenomegaly, and cholelithiasis Hemosiderosis Hemochromatosis Both the vascular complications from the sickling process itself and the fact that patients with SCD have often received multiple transfusions increase their risk for developing viral hepatitis, iron overload, and (combined with the effects of chronic hemolysis) pigmented gallstones. A combination of the following findings, depending on the hepatic cause: fever, pain, jaundice, elevated AST/ALT, cutaneous leukocytoclastic vasculitis, essential mixed cryoglobulinemia with purpura, arthralgias, glomerulonephritis, and peripheral neuropathy, positive PCR assay for viral RNA, elevated serum ferritin, Kupffer cell hyperplasia with erythrophagocytosis, sinusoidal distention with aggregates of sickled erythrocytes, and fine fibrosis in the space of Disse

image

AST/ALT, Aspartate transaminase/alanine transaminase; PCR, polymerase chain reaction; RBCs, red blood cells; SCD, sickle cell disease; image, ventilation-perfusion.

Women with SCA are more likely to experience complications during pregnancy. Fifty-four percent of pregnancies in women with SCD result in a live birth, with the average gestational age at delivery being 34 weeks.

Anesthetic implications

Because hypoxia, hypercarbia, hypothermia, acidosis, dehydration, and low-flow conditions promote erythrocyte sickling, anesthesia providers should be particularly cognizant of these issues and take steps to avoid them during the perioperative period.

Preoperative considerations

The preoperative assessment of patients who are at risk for having SCD should include Hb phenotype, past medical history, and risk status. For those patients who have an established diagnosis of SCD, the frequency, pattern, and severity of recent exacerbations, as well as the extent of any organ damage, should be ascertained. For those patients who have severe organ damage, pulmonary function tests, chest radiographs, arterial blood gas assessment, an electrocardiogram, and neurologic imaging may be indicated.

Although many anesthesia providers advocate the use of preoperative transfusions to reduce perioperative complications in patients with SCD, few controlled trials document this benefit, and transfusion is associated with significant risks. A 2012 Cochrane Review found that conservative preoperative transfusion protocols appear to be as effective as aggressive therapy in preparing people with SCD for surgery. A small, prospective, randomized trial, with results published in 2013 (Howard and associates), compared preoperative transfusion and no transfusion in patients with SCD who were scheduled to undergo low-risk or medium-risk operations. This study was terminated early because of an elevated rate of adverse events in the no-transfusion group; the investigators concluded that patients with HbSS who have baseline hemoglobin concentrations lower than 9 g/dL and are scheduled to undergo low-risk or medium-risk operations should receive a preoperative transfusion to reduce the risk of developing perioperative acute chest syndrome.

Intraoperative considerations

Microcirculatory abnormalities, chronic anemia, and progressive renal insufficiency may alter the pharmacologic response of patients with SCD to anesthetic agents. For example, in patients with SCD, the onset of the neuromuscular blocking effect of atracurium is prolonged, but the duration of action is unchanged. The use of premedication with agents that cause respiratory depressions should be avoided. Upon arrival in the operating room—and throughout the procedure—the patient should be carefully positioned to avoid venous stasis. The use of a tourniquet on an extremity is relatively contraindicated.

Throughout the procedure and in the postanesthesia care unit or intensive care unit, intravenously administered fluids should be provided, and blood loss should be replaced as indicated. Acid-base status, renal function, and cardiopulmonary status should be carefully monitored both intraoperatively as well as postoperatively. An SaO2 of 100% and a PaO2 of 90 mm Hg should be maintained, again throughout the procedure and in the immediate postoperative period (with a close-fitting, nonrebreathing facemask, at 100% O2, if necessary).

Postoperative considerations

Common postoperative morbidities associated with SCD include painful sickle cell crisis and acute chest syndrome, a phenomenon due to pulmonary sequestration of sickled cells, with symptoms that range from fever and respiratory distress to abdominal discomfort. Acute chest syndrome typically manifests on approximately postoperative day 3 and lasts for 8 days, on average. When acute chest syndrome is severe, the associated mortality rate in postoperative patients is 25% to 50%. Ventilation-perfusion mismatch and pulmonary sickling increase the risk that patients with SCD will develop pulmonary infarction and infection perioperatively. When compared with the general population, patients with SCD have a 10-fold higher risk of developing serious perioperative pulmonary complications. Therefore, atelectasis and pulmonary complications should be aggressively treated.