Blood Pressure Variability: Can Nonlinear Dynamics Enhance Risk Assessment During Cardiovascular Surgery? A Feasibility Study

Abstract

We propose that complex (nonlinear) fluctuations of hemodynamic variables including systemic blood pressure parameters) during cardiovascular surgery contain information relevant to risk assessment and intraoperative management. Preliminary analysis of a pilot study supports the feasibility and potential merits of performing a larger, prospective study to assess the clinical utility of such new dynamical measures and to evaluate their potential role in enhancing contemporary approaches to risk assessment of major adverse events.