Post-operative management and assessment
nausea or vomiting, postoperative pain, confusion, nausea and vomiting, pain, Delirium, NRS
ADVERSE EVENTS
Extubation was performed after the patient regained consciousness and spontaneous breathing. The patient was transferred to the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU). Awakening time was defined as the time from the discontinuation of anesthetics to eye opening and assessed by a blinded independent anesthesiologist.The blinded anesthesiologist in the PACU measured the modified Aldrete score every 10 min for 60 min, the numerical rating scale (NRS; 0–10) for pain every 10 min for 60 min, the cumulative consumption of rescue fentanyl, and the occurrence of adverse events, including nausea or vomiting. Fentanyl 25 μg was administered in the PACU for postoperative pain control, for an NRS score ≥ 6, and the treatment was repeated at 10-min intervals. Metoclopramide hydrochloride 10 mg was administered for nausea and vomiting. Delirium was defined as positive in the PACU using the CAM-ICU (confusion assessment method for the intensive care unit) tool, and it was assessed before transferring from PACU to the ward.In the ward, the blinded anesthesiologist assessed the following outcomes, NRS for pain on postoperative day [POD] 1, cumulative pethidine consumption on POD 1, and postoperative length of hospital stay. Pethidine 25 mg was injected for an NRS score ≥ 5 in the ward.