Pre-Operative Assessment and Optimization of Paediatric Patients

Paediatric patients provide multiple challenges. Most children that present for surgery are fit and healthy. However, it is important to identify at the preoperative assessment, those that may have an increased risk of intraoperative complications. This requires a structured approach to the preoperative assessment, and this will enable the anaesthetist to construct a safe plan for their perioperative management.

This video reviews the recent APRICOT trial and use their outcomes to focus on areas of the preoperative assessment that may predict perioperative complications in the paediatric population.

Learning outcomes:

1. Outline the importance of the preoperative assessment to optimize the perioperative management of paediatric patients.
2. Identify factors in the preoperative assessment that may predict adverse events in the perioperative period.
3. Develop an action plan for the child presenting with a runny nose.