Rehabilitation of cardiovascular pathology

Abstract

It is interesting to evaluate the role of cardiovascular and respiratory rehabilitation in patients undergoing carotid
endo-arterectomy by observing the differences between patients undergoing general anesthesia and those under local
anesthesia, with the aim of decreasing the risk of developing post-surgical complications, restore respiratory compliance and reduce user hospitalization times.
The aim of the study was to verify the effectiveness of rehabilitation treatment in a homogeneous group of 20 patients
with symptomatic and non-symptomatic stenosis and / or ≥ 70% undergoing carotid endarterectomy, 10 under general anesthesia and 10 in loco-regional anesthesia, through a cycle of respiratory rehabilitation according to the
rehabilitation protocol of the user undergoing cardiovascular surgery (Evidence Based Physiotherapy and Evidence
Based Speech Therapy).
From the analysis of these two patients’ groups, conclusions were drawn regarding the validity of physiotherapy
treatment in the post-operative recovery of the patient undergoing carotid endarterectomy. Although the literature apparently showed no statistically significant differences between the two types of anesthesia, in our small study we recorded a difference between the two types of respiratory anesthesia. In Loco-regional Anesthesia, we found a stability
in the levels of peripheral oxygen saturation at discharge compared to pre-operative. In the group of patients undergoing surgery by general anesthesia, peripheral saturimetry values worsened between pre-operative and discharge.
The loco-regional anesthesia would seem to be more advantageous from a respiratory point of view than the general
anesthesia in the general recovery of the patient. Also from a clinical point of view, in the patients of the loco-regional
anesthesia group there was a lower perception of dyspnea, the absence of exacerbation of the cough reflex, a decrease
in the difficulty in expectorating and a lesser presence of secretions in the airway.