ArticleBMC anesthesiology2023
Is atelectasis related to the development of postoperative pneumonia? a retrospective single center study.
Article in BMC anesthesiology, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers.
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Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 19 citations in OpenAlex.
- Trial
- Laryngeal mask airway versus endotracheal tube for preventing postoperative atelectasis after laparoscopic surgery: a randomized controlled trial.Frontiers in surgery · 2026Trial
- Pulmonary Atelectasis After Sedation With Propofol vs Propofol-Ketamine for Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Children: A Randomized Clinical Trial.JAMA network open · 2024Trial
- Review
- Deep-learning based quantitative evaluation of postoperative atelectasis following right upper lobectomy.NPJ digital medicine · 2026Article
- Anesthesia Type and Outcomes After Transfemoral TAVI: A Time-Sensitive Comparative Analysis.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Preoperative Aggregate Index of Systemic Inflammation is Associated with 30-Day Postoperative Pneumonia After Minimally Invasive Esophagectomy for Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma: A Retrospective Cohort Study.Infection and drug resistance · 2026Article
- Analysis of risk factors for the development of bronchiolitis obliterans in children with severeFrontiers in medicine · 2026Article
- Article
- Postoperative Pulmonary Complications After Laparoscopic Surgery: Risk Factors and Predictive Scores.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2025Observational
- Factors associated with the development of bacterial pneumonia and the preventive potential of peroral endoscopic myotomy in patients with esophageal motility disorders: a case-control study.Journal of gastroenterology · 2025Article
- Effect of sugammadex on the prevention of postoperative lung atelectasis in patients undergoing metabolic and bariatric surgery: a retrospective study.Obesity surgery · 2025Article
- Article
- Impact of prolonged postoperative antibiotic administration on postoperative complications in elderly patients undergoing colorectal cancer surgery.Frontiers in surgery · 2025Article
- Lung ultrasound assessment of atelectasis following different anesthesia induction techniques in pediatric patients: a propensity score-matched, observational study.Journal of anesthesia, analgesia and critical care · 2024Article
- Lung Ultrasound Abnormalities in Patients Without Pulmonary Pathology Prior to Surgery.Anesthesiology and pain medicine · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundAtelectasis may play a substantial role in the development of pneumonia. However, pneumonia has never been evaluated as an outcome of atelectasis in surgical patients. We aimed to determine whether atelectasis is related to an increased risk of postoperative pneumonia, intensive care unit (ICU) admission and hospital length of stay (LOS).
methodsThe electronic medical records of adult patients who underwent elective non-cardiothoracic surgery under general anesthesia between October 2019 and August 2020 were reviewed. They were divided into two groups: one who developed postoperative atelectasis (atelectasis group) and the other who did not (non-atelectasis group). The primary outcome was the incidence of pneumonia within 30 days after the surgery. The secondary outcomes were ICU admission rate and postoperative LOS.
resultsPatients in the atelectasis group were more likely to have risk factors for postoperative pneumonia including age, body mass index, a history of hypertension or diabetes mellitus and duration of surgery, compared with those in the non-atelectasis. Among 1,941 patients, 63 (3.2%) developed postoperative pneumonia; 5.1% in the atelectasis group and 2.8% in the non-atelectasis (P = 0.025). In multivariable analysis, atelectasis was associated with an increased risk of pneumonia (adjusted odds ratio, 2.33; 95% CI: 1.24 - 4.38; P = 0.008). Median postoperative LOS was significantly longer in the atelectasis group (7 [interquartile range: 5-10 days]) than in the non-atelectasis (6 [3-8] days) (P < 0.001). Adjusted median duration was also 2.19 days longer in the atelectasis group (β, 2.19; 95% CI: 0.821 - 2.834; P < 0.001). ICU admission rate was higher in the atelectasis group (12.1% vs. 6.5%; P < 0.001), but it did not differ between the groups after adjustment for confounders (adjusted odds ratio, 1.52; 95% CI: 0.88 - 2.62; P = 0.134).
conclusionAmong patients undergoing elective non-cardiothoracic surgery, patients with postoperative atelectasis were associated with a 2.33-fold higher incidence of pneumonia and a longer LOS than those without atelectasis. This finding alerts the need for careful management of perioperative atelectasis to prevent or reduce the adverse events including pneumonia and the burden of hospitalizations.
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