Postoperative Hypotension and Adverse Clinical Outcomes in Patients Without Intraoperative Hypotension, After Noncardiac Surgery

BACKGROUND: Postoperative hypotension (POH) is associated with major adverse events. However, little is known about the association of blood pressure thresholds and outcomes in postoperative patients without intraoperative hypotension (IOH) on the general-care ward. We evaluated the association of POH with major adverse cardiac or cerebrovascular events (MACCE) in patients without IOH. METHODS: This retrospective analysis included 67,968 noncardiac patient-procedures (2008–2017) for patients discharged to the ward with postoperative mean arterial pressure (MAP) readings, managed for ≥48 hours postsurgery, with no evidence of IOH. The primary outcome was 30-day MACCE evaluated by postoperative MAP thresholds: ≤75, ≤65, and ≤55 mm Hg (POH defined as a single measurement below threshold). Secondary outcomes included all-cause mortality (30-/90-day), 30-day acute myocardial infarction, 30-day acute ischemic stroke, 30-day readmission, 7-day acute kidney injury, and 30-day readmission. Associations between POH and adverse events were also evaluated in a cohort (#2) of 16,034 patient-procedures with IOH (intraoperative MAP ≤65 mm Hg). RESULTS: In patients without IOH, exposure to POH was not associated with MACCE at any investigated MAP threshold (P < .016 was considered significant: ≤75 mm Hg, hazard ratio [HR] 1.18 [98.4% confidence interval {CI} 0.99-1.39], P = .023; ≤65 mm Hg, HR 1.18 [0.99–1.41], P = .028; ≤55 mm Hg, HR 1.23 [0.90–1.71], P = .121); however, associations were observed at all MAP thresholds for secondary outcomes of acute kidney injury and 30-day readmission, for 30-/90-day mortality for MAP ≤65 mm Hg, and 90-day mortality for MAP ≤55 mm Hg, compared to those without POH. No associations were detected between POH and secondary outcomes of acute ischemic stroke or acute myocardial infarction at any MAP threshold. No interaction between POH and IOH was found when we evaluated the association of POH on outcomes in the data set including all patients, regardless of IOH status (P values for interaction terms nonsignificant). When the interaction term was utilized, the association between POH without IOH and MACCE was significant for MAP ≤75 mm Hg (HR 1.20 [1.01–1.41]) and MAP ≤65 mm Hg (HR 1.21 [1.02-1.45]), but not MAP ≤55 mm Hg. Cohort #2 (POH with IOH) showed largely similar results for MACCE: not significant for MAP ≤75 and ≤65 mm Hg, but significant for MAP ≤55 mm Hg (HR 1.53 [1.05–2.22], P = .006). CONCLUSIONS: POH in patients without IOH was not associated with MACCE at any MAP investigated. No interaction was identified between POH and IOH. Large prospective randomized trials are necessary to develop better evidence and inform clinicians the value of postoperative blood pressure management.