Perioperative management of cardiovascular medication

Park, Sung Yong

Review

Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia

Anesthesia and Pain Medicine 2014;9(3):153-158.
Published online July 31, 2014.

Perioperative management of cardiovascular medication

Sung Yong Park

Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Ajou University, College of Medicine, Suwon, Korea. anepark@hanmail.net

Received: 3 June 2014 • Revised: 21 June 2014

Abstract

Many surgical patients are taking regular cardiac medications and as a result, the perioperative management of cardiac medications poses challenges for anesthesiologists. Decisions must be made based on a risk-benefit analysis for each patient. In general, medications associated with known morbidity, if withdrawn abruptly, should be continued in the perioperative period. In contrast, medications that are thought to increase the risk of perioperative complications should be held. However, the lack of evidence is reflected by the large variation in perioperative management recommendations among anesthesiologists. This article focuses on cardiac medications known to have perioperative effects and also offers a guide to the perioperative management of cardiac management.

Key Words: Cardiac medication, Management, Perioperative