Comparison of effects of sevoflurane and desflurane on perioperative organ functions and cardiac surgery scores (CASUS) in patients undergoing open heart surgery

Introduction: Since organ dysfunctions influence healing process, preserving functions of myocardium and other organs is essential in open cardiac surgery. Limited data exists about comparative effects of desflurane and sevoflurane on organ functions and postoperative cardiac surgery scores (CASUS) in this setting. We aimed to compare effects of sevoflurane and desflurane on organ functions and CASUS in open heart surgery. Materials and methods: Upon approval by ethics committee of the hospital, we retrospectively screened medical records of patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery with either sevoflurane (Group S) or desflurane (Group D) during one year between June 2016 and May 2017. CASUS additive and CASUS logistic scores were also calculated. Results: Group S (n=40) and Group D (n=35) were similar in terms of baseline characteristics. The groups also did not differ by perioperative clinical characteristics except duration of mechanical ventilation, which was 6.8 ± 1.1 hours in Group S compared with 5.6 ± 0.8 hours in Group D (p<0.001). Change in troponin values from preoperative to postoperative period was similar between the groups (p=0.182). Length of hospital or ICU stay and CASUS additive or logistic scores were also not significantly different between study groups. Conclusion: Effects of desflurane and sevoflurane on CASUS at intensive care unit were shown to be similar. Nevertheless, desflurane decreased duration of mechanical ventilation significantly more than that done by sevoflurane. This study shows that both desflurane and sevoflurane could be safely used in open cardiac surgeries.