Perioperative characteristics of patients with and without dysphagia following cardiac surgery
| Variable | Patients; no. (%) | p value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All, n = 254 | Without dysphagia, n = 124 | With dysphagia, n = 130 | ||
| Procedure | ||||
| Coronary artery bypass graft | 123 (48.4) | 66 (53.2) | 57 (43.8) | 0.044 |
| Valve | 59 (23.2) | 22 (17.7) | 37 (28.5) | 0.13 |
| Other | 72 (28.3) | 36 (29.0) | 36 (27.7) | 0.83 |
| Urgency | ||||
| Elective | 103 (40.6) | 52 (41.9) | 51 (39.2) | 0.66 |
| Inpatient | 79 (31.1) | 34 (27.4) | 45 (34.6) | 0.22 |
| Urgent | 38 (15.0) | 24 (19.4) | 14 (10.8) | 0.11 |
| Emergent | 34 (13.4) | 14 (11.3) | 20 (15.4) | 0.30 |
| Perioperative complications | ||||
| Stroke* | 21 (8.3) | 5 (4.1) | 16 (12.4) | 0.06 |
| Sepsis† | 21 (8.3) | 4 (3.3) | 17 (13.2) | 0.004 |
| Use of dopamine in intensive care | 233 (92.5) | 110 (89.4) | 123 (95.3) | 0.09 |
| Intra-aortic balloon pump | ||||
| Preoperative | 36 (14.2) | 17 (13.7) | 19 (14.6) | 0.60 |
| Postoperative | 62 (24.4) | 30 (24.2) | 32 (24.6) | 0.99 |
| Low-output syndrome‡ | 87 (34.3) | 39 (31.5) | 48 (36.9) | 0.66 |
↵* Evidence of persistent neurologic deficit.
↵† Positive blood culture.
↵‡ Use of inotrope or mechanical devices for more than 30 minutes to maintain a blood pressure greater than 90 mm Hg with a confidence interval less than 2.2 l/m/m2; Missing values: 1 patient without dysphagia; 1 patient with dysphagia.