The prevalence and predictors of post–intensive care syndrome following cardiac surgery

Objective

Post–intensive care syndrome has been well documented in the general critical care population, but the prevalence of post–intensive care syndrome in the cardiac surgery population remains uncertain. We sought to define the prevalence of post–intensive care syndrome and associated risk factors after adult cardiac surgery.

Methods

Data were collected on 397 consecutive adult patients undergoing cardiac surgery. The patients were surveyed 4 weeks after surgery using the Healthy Aging Brain Care Monitor Self-Report version between June 2022 and June 2023.

Results

Seventy percent of patients reported symptoms consistent with mild (50%) or severe (20%) post–intensive care syndrome. Patients with severe post–intensive care syndrome score were more likely to be female (P = .04), to be White (P = .03), and to have new dialysis (P = .01). Hypoglycemia (P < .001) and high Richmond Agitation Sedation Scale score (P = .001) were also associated with severe post–intensive care syndrome. Further, a history of diabetes (P = .05), depression (P = .01), and anxiety (P = .01) were more commonly observed in patients with post–intensive care syndrome.

Conclusions

Our study demonstrated a significant prevalence of post–intensive care syndrome after cardiac surgery. We identified female gender, White race, hemodialysis, hypoglycemia, and higher Richmond Agitation Sedation Scale scores as factors associated with increased risk of post–intensive care syndrome.