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Evidence summaries

Type of Anaesthesia and Postoperative Pulmonary Infections

Regional anaesthesia reduces postoperative pneumonia compared with general anaesthesia. Level of evidence: "A"

A topic in Clinical Evidence 1 summarizes the results of one systematic review (search date 1997, 28 RCTs). Neuraxial blockade with or without general anaesthesia reduced postoperative pneumonia compared with general anaesthesia (3% with neuraxial blockade vs 5% with general anaesthesia, ARR 2%, RR 0.60, 95% CI 0.49 to 0.74, NNT 50).

    References

    • Smith A. What are the effects of preventive interventions. Postoperative pulmonary infections. Postoperative pulmonary infections. Clinical Evidence 2005;13:1726-1731.

Primary/Secondary Keywords