Mikor et al.

BMC Anesthesiology (2015) 15:82

DOI 10.1186/s12871-015-0064-2

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Open Access

Continuous central venous oxygen saturation

assisted intraoperative hemodynamic management
during major abdominal surgery: a randomized,
controlled trial
Andrs Mikor1*, Domonkos Trsy1, Mrton F Nmeth1, Angelika Osztroluczki1, Szilvia Kocsi2, Ildik Kovcs1,
Gbor Demeter1 and Zsolt Molnr1

Abstract
Background: Major abdominal surgery is associated with significant risk of morbidity and mortality in the
perioperative period. Optimising intraoperative fluid administration may result in improved outcomes. Our aim
was to compare the effects of central venous pressure (CVP), and central venous oxygen saturation (ScvO2)-assisted
fluid therapy on postoperative complications in patients undergoing high risk surgery.
Methods: Patients undergoing elective major abdominal surgery were randomised into control and ScvO2 groups. The
target level of mean arterial pressure (MAP) was 60 mmHg in both groups. In cases of MAP < 60 mmHg patients
received either a fluid or vasopressor bolus according to the CVP < 8 mmHg in the control group. In the ScvO2 group,
in addition to the MAP, an ScvO2 of <75 % or a >3 % decrease indicated need for intervention, regardless of the actual
MAP. Data are presented as mean standard deviation or median (interquartile range).
Results: We observed a lower number of patients with complications in the ScvO2 group compared to the control
group, however it did not reach statistical significance (ScvO2 group: 10 vs. control group: 19; p = 0.07). Patients in the
ScvO2 group (n = 38) received more colloids compared to the control group (n = 41) [279(161) vs. 107(250) ml/h;
p < 0.001]. Both groups received similar amounts of crystalloid (1126 471 vs. 1049 431 ml/h; p = 0.46) and
norepinephrine [37(107) vs. 18(73) mcg/h; p = 0.84]. Despite similar blood loss in both groups, the ScvO2 group
received more blood transfusions (63 % vs. 37 %; p = 0.018). More patients in the control group had a postoperative
PaO2/FiO2 < 200 mmHg (23 vs. 10, p < 0.01). Twenty eight day survival was significantly higher in the ScvO2 group
(37/38 vs. 33/41 p = 0.018).
Conclusion: ScvO2-assisted intraoperative haemodynamic support provided some benefits, including significantly
better postoperative oxygenation and 28 day survival rate, compared to CVP-assisted therapy without a significant
effect on postoperative complications during major abdominal surgery.
Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02337010.
Keywords: Haemodynamic management, Central venous oxygen saturation, Postoperative complications

* Correspondence: andrasmikor@gmail.com
1
Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Therapy, University of Szeged,
6. Semmelweis str., 6725 Szeged, Hungary
Full list of author information is available at the end of the article
2015 Mikor et al.; licensee BioMed Central. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative
Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and
reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public Domain
Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article,
unless otherwise stated.

Mikor et al. BMC Anesthesiology (2015) 15:82

Background
There are an estimated 234 million surgical operations
worldwide every year, with significant risk of morbidity
and mortality in the perioperative period in patients
undergoing major surgery [1]. Following the implementation of safety standards outcomes after anaesthesia
have improved, although estimations of perioperative
complications and postoperative morbidity are difficult.
It has been suggested this may be between 3 and 17 % of
cases [2, 3].
Several studies have revealed that inappropriate intraoperative fluid therapy may be responsible for postoperative complications and organ failure. Excessive fluid
administration during surgical procedures may lead to
more frequent postoperative complications [4, 5], while
restrictive fluid therapy may improve outcome after
major elective gastrointestinal surgery [6]. On the other
hand, fluid restriction may increase the level of hypovolemia and hence hypoperfusion, and thereby increased incidence of postoperative complications [7].
It is well known, that using heart rate (HR), mean
arterial pressure (MAP) and central venous pressure
(CVP) to assess and guide haemodynamic support may
be misleading [810].
Advanced haemodynamic monitoring, using cardiac
output, stroke volume, stroke volume variation (SVV),
pulse pressure variation (PPV) to guide intraoperative
fluid therapy has resulted in improved outcomes in
several studies [1114]. Despite the increasing evidence,
advanced haemodynamic monitoring has not become
routine practice and, in high risk patients, arterial and
central venous pressure monitoring remain the most
common tools applied in more than 80 % of cases in
Europe and in the United States [15]. One of the reasons
may be that accurate measurement of cardiac output,
SVV and PPV require advanced instrumentation.
Another important factor for haemodynamic stability
is the balance between oxygen delivery (DO2) and consumption (VO2). Unfortunately, detailed haemodynamic
evaluation, including DO2/VO2 balance, for every high
risk patient in the operating theatre is not feasible. The
most often used bedside parameter to assess the relationship between oxygen supply and consumption is the
central venous oxygen saturation (ScvO2). Continuous
monitoring of the ScvO2 is also possible with a device
based on fiber-optic technology via a standard central
venous catheter. Values measured by this approach have
shown good correlation with laboratory values [16].
ScvO2 reflects important changes in the DO2/VO2 relationship, has been found to be useful during high-risk
surgery, and low ScvO2 is associated with increased
postoperative complications [17, 18]. Despite these
theoretical advantages, ScvO2 is only used in 1230 %
of high risk surgical patients [15]. In clinical routine,

Page 2 of 10

MAP and CVP are the most frequently applied monitoring tools (7595 %) during high risk surgery [15],
despite convincing evidence that neither can predict
fluid responsiveness [810].
Therefore, the aim of the current study was to compare the effects of ScvO2 assisted intraoperative
haemodynamic support to the routinely used MAPCVP approach on postoperative complications in high
risk surgical patients.

Methods
Patients

Following Regional Ethics Committee approval (details

are summarised below) and obtaining written informed
consent, all patients undergoing the following elective
major abdominal surgeries, including oesophagectomy,
total gastrectomy, radical cystectomy, aorto-bifemoral
bypass or elective repair of abdominal aortic aneurysm,
were enrolled into our prospective study. After surgery
all patients were admitted to our intensive care unit
(ICU) in Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive
Therapy, University of Szeged, Hungary. Exclusion
criteria were pre-existing chronic organ insufficiency as
determined by the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health
Evaluation (APACHE) II scoring system, New York
Heart Association Class IV, chronic hypoxia or hypercapnia, chronic renal failure requiring renal replacement
therapy, biopsy proven cirrhosis or portal hypertension
and immunodeficiency [19]. Furthermore, in cases of
preoperative anaemia (haemoglobin < 100 g/L), coagulation abnormality, and patients with chronic use of corticosteriods and non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs
were also excluded. Patients requiring an operation due
to malignant disease where the tumour then proved to
be inoperable were also excluded.
Patients were randomly allocated by envelope randomisation in a block-of-ten fashion into control, or
ScvO2 groups.
Anaesthesia and monitoring

All patients received routine anaesthetic management,

premedication with oral benzodiazepine, induction with
propofol (12 mg/kg), muscle relaxation with rocuronium (0.6 mg/kg) and analgesia with intravenous fentanyl (0.71 mcg/kg/dose). If an epidural catheter was
inserted, it was tested with 60 mg lignocaine but during
the operation only intravenous analgesia was used to
prevent hypotension caused by epidural analgesia.
Anaesthesia was maintained with sevoflurane (minimum
alveolar concentration (MAC): 1.01.2). After endotracheal intubation, arterial and internal jugular central
venous catheters were inserted. During the surgical procedures haemodynamic parameters (heart rate, invasive
blood pressure, CVP), oxygen saturation (SaO2), end-

Mikor et al. BMC Anesthesiology (2015) 15:82

Page 3 of 10

tidal CO2 tension, respiratory gases, and urine output

were monitored. Ventilation was maintained with a
peep end-expiratory pressure of 4 cmH2O, tidal volume 68 ml/kg and fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO2)
0.40.5 to maintain SaO2 > 94 % and end-tidal CO2
tension of 3540 mmHg. In all patients lactated
Ringers solution (1015 ml/kg/h) was infused as the
baseline volume replacement. Arterial and central
venous blood samples were taken hourly for blood gas
analysis. The amount of crystalloid and colloid infusion administered, the demand and dose of vasopressor/inotropic support and blood transfusions were all
recorded at the end of surgery.
Measurement of ScvO2

Central venous saturation was continuously monitored

in the ScvO2 group by using a CeVOX monitor (Pulsion
Medical Systems, Munich, Germany). The CeVOX probe
(PV2022-37; Pulsion Medical Systems, Munich, Germany)
was inserted into the internal jugular central venous
catheter as described in the manufacturers users manual.
The position of the central venous catheter in the superior
vena cava was confirmed by chest X-ray postoperatively.
The system was calibrated in vivo for ScvO2 measurements by laboratory co-oximeter (Cobas b 221, Roche
Ltd, Basel, Switzerland). Calibration, if necessary, was
repeated at least hourly during the surgical procedure. In
the control group the level of central venous saturation
was measured hourly by laboratory co-oximeter.
Interventions and protocol

The anaesthetist responsible for the patient was blinded

to the ScvO2 in the control group and to the CVP in
the ScvO2 group. Regarding interventions in general, if
hypovolaemia was suspected (see below) fluid bolus
was given in the form of 250 ml hydroxyethyl starch
solution (HES, 6 % hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 in 0.9 %
sodium chloride, Voluven, Fresenius Kabi, Germany) over

15 min. If hypovolaemia was unlikely, but hypotension

was present this was treated with a vasopressor (10 mcg
bolus or continuous infusion of norepinephrine).
In the control group cases of hypotension (as defined by MAP < 60 mmHg) were treated with a fluid
bolus if the CVP < 8 mmHg, and norepinephrine if the
CVP 8 mmHg, reflecting the clinical routine. These
target values are also recommended in several (albeit
not intra-operative), guidelines [20, 21].
In the ScvO2 group, hypotension (MAP < 60 mmHg)
was considered primarily due to hypovolaemia if the
ScvO2 < 75 %, and patients received a fluid bolus. If the
ScvO2 75 %, it was assumed that hypotension was primarily due to vasodilatation caused by general anaesthesia, and norepinephrine was administrated. In addition
to low MAP there was also another trigger for intervention in this group: if ScvO2 dropped below 75 % or there
was a sudden decrease by more than >3 %, patients received a fluid bolus regardless of the MAP. The main
steps of the protocol are summarised in Fig. 1. The
effect of the administered fluid bolus was reassessed in
every 15 min. It is important to note that in cases of persistent hypotension treated by the fluid bolus as per the
study protocol, anaesthetists were allowed to administer
norepinephrine boluses in both groups and the amount
given was recorded and added to the total dose calculated at the end of surgery. Intraoperative transfusion
was indicated if the haemoglobin level was below 80 g/l
as determined by blood gas analysis. Intraoperative
blood recovery techniques were not used.
During the operation arterial and central venous blood
gas analysis were done hourly. Blood samples for laboratory assessments such as kidney function, liver function,
blood count and inflammatory parameters such as procalcitonin (PCT) and C-reactive protein (CRP) were
taken before the operation, on arrival to the ICU and 24,
48 h later. Arterial and central venous blood gas analyses
were also performed at these time points.
ScvO2 - group

Control group
MAP<60 mmHg

ScvO2<75% or

>3%

MAP < 60 mmHg

ScvO2<75%

CVP < 8 mmHg

Yes

No

HES 250 ml

NE 10 mcg

Yes

HES 250 ml

HES 250 ml

No

NE 10 mcg

Fig. 1 Flowchart of the study design. MAP: mean arterial pressure, CVP: central venous pressure, ScvO2: central venous oxygen saturation, HES:
hydroxyethyl starch, NE: norepinephrine

Mikor et al. BMC Anesthesiology (2015) 15:82

Statistics

All data are presented as mean SD or median (interquartile range) as indicated by data distribution tested
by the Shapiro-Wilk test. Independent samples T-test or
MannWhitney U test were used to compare the data
between the two groups depending on data distribution
in each measurement. To evaluate changes in the measured parameters over time within the groups, two-way
analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used. To assess the
difference between categorical data we used Pearsons
chi-squared test.
The main outcome parameter was the incidence of
postoperative complications on the first and second
postoperative day. We calculated the number of patients
observed with pulmonary, circulation, abdominal, renal,
infectious or surgical complications based on a previous
study by Mayer at al. [22]. Following completion of the
study, respiratory complications and acute kidney injury
were analysed post hoc. Pulmonary function was
assessed by using the ratio of arterial partial oxygen tension and the fraction of inspired oxygen (PaO2/FiO2)
according to the Berlin definition of acute respiratory
distress syndrome [23]. To assess the severity of kidney
disease we used the Kidney Disease Improving Global
Outcome (KDIGO) acute kidney injury definition [24].
Secondary end points were the difference in intraoperative fluid and vasopressor requirements. Based on the results of a previous study on a similar patient population
[22], it was found that in the control group the incidence
of organ dysfunction was 50 %, whereas in the goal directed therapy group it was only 20 % (i.e. the difference
was 30 %). Therefore, to have 80 % power if the p < 0.05
with Pearsons chi-squared test, the required number of
patients should be a minimum of 40 per group. For

Fig. 2 CONSORT flow diagram of the study

Page 4 of 10

statistical analysis the Statistical Package for Social

Sciences (SPSS version 20, IBM Corporation, Armonk,
NY, United States) software for Windows was used.
Statistical significance was considered at p < 0.05.
Ethics

Ethical approval for this study (2618 2/2010.) was provided by the Regional Ethical Committee of University
of Szeged, Albert Szent-Gyrgyi Health Center, Szeged,
Hungary (Chairperson: Prof. Tibor Wittmann) in 2010.

Results
Eighty five patients met the inclusion criteria between
2011 and 2013. One patient was excluded due to chronic
renal failure hence 42 patients were randomized to each
group. Four patients in the ScvO2 group and 1 patient in
the control group had to be withdrawn from the study
due to the inoperability of the tumour (Fig. 2). There
were no significant differences between the two groups
regarding demographics and clinical characteristics. Five
patients in the control group were not extubated at the
end of the surgery, 4 of whom were extubated on the
first postoperative day and one patient was ventilated for
11 days. In the ScvO2 group, all patients were extubated
at the end of surgery apart from 2 patients who were
extubated on the first postoperative day and 1 patient
who was ventilated for 3 days. Following extubation all
patients received oxygen supplementation via a 28 % or
40 % Venturi face mask to maintain SaO2 > 94 %. Two
patients died in the ICU in the control group with
28 days survival also significantly lower in this group
(Table 1).
There was no significant difference in ScvO2 between
the two groups at baseline. During the operation there

Mikor et al. BMC Anesthesiology (2015) 15:82

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Table 1 Demography of the patients. Data are shown as mean SD or median (interquartile)
Age (years)

ScvO2 (n = 38)

Control (n = 41)

62 8

62 8

0.95

Sex (M/F)

28/10

29/12

0.77

APACHE II

12 4

11 5

0.37

ICU LOS (days)

3 (2)

3 (2)

0.663

Length of operation (min)

247 82

254 45

0.76

Oesophagectomy (number of patients)

Total gastrectomy (number of patients)

Cystectomy (number of patients)

22

29

Aortobifemoral bypass (number of patients)

Aortic aneurysm (number of patients)

ICU survival (S/NS)

38/0

39/2

0.17

28 day survival (S/NS)

37/1

33/8

0.018*

*: p<0.05

was a decrease in ScvO2 in the ScvO2 group while it

remained almost unchanged in the control group, reaching a significant difference between the two groups four
hours after the start of the operation (Fig. 3). The target
MAP was achieved in most cases with no difference
between the groups (Fig. 4). Regarding the CVP there
was no significant difference between the two groups
throughout the operation (Fig. 5). Measurement of the
urine output during the operation was complicated in 33
patients who underwent radical cystectomy. However, in
cases where exact measurement was possible, hourly
urine output showed a significant difference between the
two groups: ScvO2 group (n = 23): 165 98 ml/h vs. controls (n = 23): 109 92 ml/h, p = 0.023. Although less
patients had at least one hypotensive episode during surgery in the ScvO2 group (17 vs. 25 in the control group),
this difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.18).
Patients received more colloid intraoperatively in the

ScvO2 group, while the amount of crystalloid infusion

administered was similar in both groups. The number of
patients who received an intraoperative blood transfusion was also significantly higher in the ScvO2 group,
although intraoperative blood loss was similar in both
groups (Table 2). The haemoglobin levels at the start
(ScvO2 group: 108 19 g/l vs. control: 109 22 g/l) and
the end of the operation showed no significant difference
(ScvO2 group: 94 14 g/l vs. control: 97 17 g/l). The
lactate levels were normal in both groups during the
whole operation without any significant difference or
change (Fig. 6). There was no difference between the
two groups in the number of patients with vasopressor
support and their vasopressor demand during the operation (Table 2).
Regarding postoperative complications, there were
more patients with complications in the control group
but it did not reach statistical significance. However,

95

ScvO2 (%)

90

85
80

Control
ScvO2

75
70
65
60
0

Length of operation (hours)

Fig. 3 Changes in central venous saturation (ScvO2) during the operation. Data are shown as mean and standard deviation

Mikor et al. BMC Anesthesiology (2015) 15:82

Page 6 of 10

120

MAP (mmHg)

110
100
90
80

Control
ScvO2

70
60
50
40
0

Length of operation (hours)

Fig. 4 Changes in mean arterial pressure (MAP) during the operation. Data are shown as mean and standard deviation

pulmonary complications as determined by the PaO2/

FiO2 ratio were significantly higher on the first and
second postoperative day in the control group (Table 3).
There was no difference regarding the dose of
fentanyl used during the operation (ScvO2: 179 [70]
mcg/h vs. control: 167 [77] mcg/h, p = 0.06). The MAC
of sevoflurane remained between 1.0 and 1.2 during the
whole operation for both groups with no significant
difference.
There were no significant differences in any of the investigated inflammatory markers (CRP, leucocyte count, fever,
microalbuminuria data not shown) throughout the
perioperative period. PCT also showed almost identical kinetics and absolute values in the two groups at t02448
(ScvO2: 0.06 [0.00] - 0.66 [1.21] - 0.45 [0.98]; controls: 0.06
[0.01] - 0.53 [1.4] - 0.42 [1.03] ng/ml, respectively).

Discussion
In this prospective randomised study we found that ScvO2
and MAP based intraoperative haemodynamic management resulted in more intraoperative interventions, better

intraoperative diuresis and less pulmonary dysfunction in

the postoperative period compared to a MAP and CVP
guided therapy, however the overall complication rate was
not reduced significantly.
ScvO2 during intraoperative haemodynamic management

It has been shown that ScvO2 is a reliable parameter to

assess the balance between oxygen supply and demand
in critically ill patients [20, 25, 26]. Although controversy
still exists about the interpretation of ScvO2, it is universally accepted that low values suggest a global oxygen
debt [26] and subsequently a Collaborative Study Group
has warranted clinical trials be performed with goaldirected therapy using ScvO2 as a target in high-risk surgical patients [18].
In one of the first studies on this subject it was found
that reduced ScvO2 in the postoperative period is related
to increased post-operative complications. The best cutoff value of ScvO2 for predicting complications was
found to be 64.4 % in the early post-operative period
[17]. However, the target or in other words normal

18

CVP (mmHg)

16
14
12
10

Control
ScvO2

8
6
4
2
0
0

Length of operation (hours)

Fig. 5 Changes in central venous pressure (CVP) during the operation. Data are shown as mean and standard deviation

Mikor et al. BMC Anesthesiology (2015) 15:82

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Table 2 Intraoperative interventions. Data are shown as mean SD or median (interquartile)

p

ScvO2 (n = 38)

Control (n = 41)

Crystalloid (ml/h)

1126 471

1049 431

Colloid (ml/h)

279 (161)

107 (250)

Number of patients needing vasopressor

11

15

0.47

0.46
<0.001*

Dose of vasopressor (mcg/h)

37 (107)

18 (73)

0.84

Number of patients receiving blood transfusion

24

15

0.02*

Blood loss during the operation (ml)

973 473

983 574

0.99

*: p<0.05

intraoperative ScvO2 value remains uncertain. Theoretically

ScvO2 should be higher than the physiological value determined in awake subjects or found in patients in ICU, due to
the reduced oxygen demand/consumption during general
anaesthesia. In a recent study in which pre- and postoperative ScvO2 values were investigated in patients undergoing
major abdominal surgery, the critical value was suggested to
be 73 % [18]. There is also data that keeping the oxygen extraction ratio (calculated from the arterial and central venous oxygen saturation) below 27 % resulted in less
postoperative organ dysfunction and reduced hospital stay
in high-risk surgical patients [27]. In a recent observational
study in surgical patients, even higher levels of ScvO2 have
been reported (84.7 8.3 %) [28]. We had similar findings in
a previous pilot study, in which the median ScvO2 was 81 %
for the whole sample [29]. Therefore, in the current study
we decided to use an interventional threshold of ScvO2
75 % or a decrease of >3 %, and observed more therapeutic
interventions compared to the MAP and CVP guided control group: patients received more fluid and blood transfusions. Any decrease in DO2 might have been recognised
earlier by ScvO2 than CVP and resulted in more frequent
interventions, similar to the results of Rivers et al., who (although in septic patients) also found that the patients
assigned to early goal-directed therapy received significantly more fluid, more red-cell transfusions and

inotropic support in the initial phase of resuscitation

[20]. As there was no difference between the groups in
the haemoglobin levels at the start and at the end of
the operation, and the intraoperative blood loss was
similar in both groups, the increased use of fluid in
the ScvO2 group may had caused dilutional anaemia
and the need for more frequent transfusion in this
group. These interventions possibly resulted in better
tissue perfusion and oxygen delivery, also shown by
the significantly better intraoperative diuresis which
might have led to better outcomes. Indeed, it has been
shown that there is strong relationship between ScvO2
and anaemia causing an altered VO2/DO2 balance
[30].

Fluid intake and outcome

In the ScvO2 group patients received more colloid boluses.

This is similar to a recent paper by Goepfert et al., in
which goal-directed therapy in patients undergoing
cardiac surgery, using stroke volume variation and optimised global end diastolic volume index, resulted in
significantly more colloid administration both intraoperatively and in the ICU alike, and was accompanied by better
outcomes [31]. In our study the number of patients with
complications was lower in the ScvO2 group who had

Lactate (mmol/l)

4
3,5
3
2,5
2

Control
ScvO2

1,5
1
0,5
0
0

Length of operation (hours)

Fig. 6 Changes in lactate level during the operation. Data are shown as mean and standard deviation

Mikor et al. BMC Anesthesiology (2015) 15:82

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Table 3 Postoperative complications within 48 h after the operation. Data are shown as number of patients with each complication.
KDIGO: Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes staging

Infection

Control (n = 41)

0.33

Abdominal

0.94

Urinary tract

0.33

Wound

0.11

Cardiac decompensation

Arrhythmia

0.19

Vasopressor need

14

0.31

Mechanical ventilation > 24 h

Circulation

Abdominal

ScvO2 (n = 38)
Respiratory

Acute myocardial infarction

Stroke

Constipation

0.71

Upper gastrointestinal bleeding

0.33

Re-operation

0.60

Urine output < 500 ml/24 h or haemodialysis

0.34

Postoperative surgical bleeding

0.96

0.33

10

19

0.07

Perioperative deaths
Number of patients with complications
>300 Hgmm
PaO2/FiO2

0.62

200300 Hgmm

24

15

0.02*

100200 Hgmm

10

22

0.01*

0.52

no injury

27

29

0.59

KDIGO 1

10

0.36

KDIGO 2

0.28

KDIGO 3

0.73

<100 Hgmm

Acute kidney injury

*: p<0.05

higher fluid intake during the operation, although the

difference was not significant.
Despite the increased fluid administration and transfusion, gas exchange was not affected as indicated by the
PaO2/FiO2 ratio, which was actually higher in the ScvO2
group. We couldnt identify any early adverse effects
from the use of colloid solution as indicated by the renal
function tests. Although there was significantly higher
28 day survival in the ScvO2 group, but the study wasnt
powered to measure the effect on survival, hence the
sample size is too small to draw any conclusion regarding postoperative mortality.
Regarding intraoperative fluid management, there is
large body of evidence that restrictive fluid strategy
during major surgery is superior to liberal protocols
[32, 33]. This is certainly true when only basic monitoring (blood pressure, heart rate, urine output) is
applied. However, whenever advanced haemodynamic
targets are used, treatment can be individualised, in
other words tailored to the patients actual need rather

than simply just treating protocol based numbers

(MAP or CVP), which may be beneficial for some, but
may harm others [34]. There is mounting evidence
that dynamic physiological indices based approaches
are more beneficial than conventional treatments for
patients undergoing high risk surgery [31, 35]. These
are also in accordance with the findings of the recent
OPTIMISE trial [36], which although could not show
any significant reduction in the primary outcome
(complication rate at 30 days) in the cardiac output
guided group, there was a measurable treatment effect,
and at 180 days there was a non-significant reduction
in mortality.
CVP vs. ScvO2 as therapeutic targets

It has been shown that static preload parameters, including CVP, have limited clinical value in guiding
heaemodynamic support and may also be inadequate
for predicting fluid responsiveness [10, 37]. In our
study there was no significant difference at any time

Mikor et al. BMC Anesthesiology (2015) 15:82

point either between, or within groups for CVP, while

ScvO2 did change and reached a significant difference
between the groups over time. During anaesthesia oxygen consumption is lower than while awake, and both
oxygen uptake and demand are more-or-less steady.
Therefore, it is reasonable to assume that changes in
ScvO2 mainly reflected changes in cardiac output and
oxygen supply. It has also been shown that there is
poor relationship between ventricular filling pressure
and ventricular volume, hence CVP is a very crude
measure of haemodynamic changes. This relationship
could further be disturbed by diastolic dysfunction and
altered ventricular compliance [38]. Despite all these
data, CVP measurement is still more widely used compared to ScvO2 in the intraoperative setting [15].
There was a non-significant gradual decrease in ScvO2
in both groups towards the end of surgery, reaching the
targeted 75 % in the ScvO2 group. There was no significant difference between the groups initially, but after 4 h
ScvO2 remained significantly higher in the control
group. Whilst there is general consensus that low venous
oxygen saturations are an important warning sign for
the inadequacy of oxygen delivery [39], high values are
more difficult to interpret. High values may mean reduced demand, but may also mean inadequate uptake
[40, 41]. Although we cannot prove it, we cannot exclude that the high ScvO2 values in the control group
may have been the result of inadequate fluid loading
causing reduced oxygen uptake.

Page 9 of 10

However, as the anaesthetic protocols were the same in

both groups, and as the MAC values and opioid consumption were also similar it is felt that this may not
impact on the results.

Conclusions
In the current study, using ScvO2 as a haemodynamic
end-point in addition to MAP, resulted in more intraoperative fluid administration and transfusion during
major abdominal surgery. Based on our results, as the
insertion of a central venous line is part of the routine
management of these surgical procedures, instead of
advanced haemodynamic monitoring, ScvO2 assisted
intraoperative haemodynamic management may be a
useful alternative and may also lead to improved outcomes. This study also supports our previous assumption that if ScvO2 is used during general anaesthesia,
higher levels should be considered as a target value
than in the critical care setting.
Abbreviations
APACHE: Acute physiology and chronic health evaluation; CRP: C-reactive
protein; CVP: Central venous pressure; DO2: Oxygen delivery; FiO2: Fraction of
inspired oxygen; HES: Hydroxyethyl starch; HR: Heart rate; KDIGO: Kidney
disease improving global outcome; MAC: Minimum alveolar concentration;
MAP: Mean arterial pressure; PCT: Procalcitonin; PPV: Pulse pressure variation;
SaO2: Arterial oxygen saturation; ScvO2: Central venous saturation; SVV: Stroke
volume variation; VO2: Oxygen consumption.
Competing interests
Dr Molnar is the member of the PULSION Medical Advisory Board, and
receives occasional honoraria for lectures. The rest of the authors declare
that they have no competing interests.

Limitations of the study

Although we did perform a power analysis to determine

the sample size, this was still a relatively small single
centre study. As a result the largest proportion of patients consisted of those who underwent radical cystectomy, which may hinder the application of the results
for all types of major surgery. Furthermore, neither
cardiac output, nor pulse pressure or stroke volume variations were monitored for more precise haemodynamic
evaluation. We commenced this study before we had the
results of one of our recent multicentre studies on pulse
pressure variation/cardiac index/MAP guided intraoperative management [35]. On the other hand, continuous
monitoring of dynamic parameters such as SVV or PPV
are not the part of the routine haemodynamic assessment and management during these operations. However, regarding these procedures, introduction of a
central venous line is part of the routine approach,
therefore the measurement of ScvO2 provided an
easily obtainable alternative for optimising intraoperative haemodynamics. Finally, depth of anaesthesia
measurement with bispectral index monitoring was not
applied although it is well known that awareness can
have a significant effect on hemodynamic responses.

Authors contributions
AM participated in acquisition, analysis and interpretation of data, drafted
the manuscript. DT, MFN, AO participated in enrolling patients, acquisition,
analysis and interpretation of data. SzK, IK, GD participated in the design of
the study and acquisition of data. ZsM conceived of the study, participated
in its design and coordination and helped to draft the manuscript. All
authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Acknowledgements
No funding bodies were involved during the preparation and conduction of
our study. We would like to thank Mrs. Harriet Adamson in helping us as a
language editor finalizing our manuscript.
Author details
1
Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Therapy, University of Szeged,
6. Semmelweis str., 6725 Szeged, Hungary. 2Hungarian Defence Forces
Medical Center, Budapest, Hungary.
Received: 14 December 2014 Accepted: 23 May 2015

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