Factors Associated with Early Extubation After Superior Cavopulmonary Connection: Analysis from Single Ventricle Reconstruction Trial

Background: To evaluate the landscape of early extubation, and identify factors associated with early extubation (≤ 24 h) after superior cavopulmonary connection (stage 2 operation) among children with single ventricle anatomy.

Methods: Patients undergoing stage 2 operation after Norwood operation from the Pediatric Heart Network Single Ventricle Reconstruction (SVR) trial public-use dataset were included. Elastic net regularized logistic regression models were fitted to evaluate the factors associated with early extubation after stage 2 operation.

Results: In total, 390 patients from 15 North American centers qualified for inclusion. Of these, 42 patients (10.8%) were extubated in operating room, 151 patients (38.7%) were extubated outside the operating room within the first 24 h after stage 2 operation, and the remaining 197 patients (50.5%) required mechanical ventilation for > 24 h. In adjusted models, factors associated with early extubation after stage 2 operation were elective timing of stage 2 operation, lower incidence of post-Norwood complications, shorter CPB duration for stage 2 operation, and no cardiac catheterization after Stage 2 operation. We also performed multiple other alternative analyses to identify factors associated with early extubation that demonstrated same associations as the primary model. The mean hospital length of stay after Stage 2 operation was 20% shorter among patients with early extubation.

Conclusions: Data from this large multicenter study demonstrate that approximately one-half of the patients undergoing operation for superior cavopulmonary connection are extubated within 24 h after heart operation. Furthermore, early extubation is associated with shorter hospital length of stay.