Get Pumped: Perioperative Blood Pressure Targets & When to Stent Coronary Artery Disease

On this week’s episode of The Rounds Table we’re honing in on important advances in cardiovascular disease management. Kieran Quinn and Paxton Bach guide listeners through the ORBITA and INPRESS trials.

It’s one of those deceptively simple sounding questions in cardiology: who should we stent? Although PCI has been around for 40 years, we are still learning more about when to use it and when not to. Paxton guides listeners through the ORBITA trial which examined outcomes after PCI versus placebo in patients with symptomatic coronary artery disease.

Next, Kieran covers the INPRESS trial. Intraoperative hypotension is associated with end organ damage and an increased risk of mortality in high risk patients; there is no consensus regarding optimal blood pressure target thresholds to support perfusion of critical organs during surgery. The INPRESS trial sought to determine if a strategy of targeting individualized systolic blood pressure, tailored to the patient’s usual value, would reduce organ dysfunction compared to usual practice.

Finally, the Good Stuff segment. Have you ever wondered what “natural flavour” is and if it is any healthier than “artificial flavour”? Kieran breaks it down for listeners. Paxton then shares an article on a vaccine against heroin addiction.

If you like what you hear, rate us on iTunes! Chat with us on Twitter @roundstable and tweet at Kieran @kieranlquinn and Paxton @paxback