Timizing the microcirculation and potentially improving postoperative wound repair in older persons.I. BackgroundSurgical wound repair is a major problem in the older population1, who are at increased risk of wound dehiscence and infection2. As a specific example, surgical site infections (SSI) are common (about 500,000 cases annually in the United States), lead to worse patient outcome (patients who develop SSI are twice as likely to die3), and are an enormous economic burden (1?0 billion dollars annually)4. Many factors contribute to age related changes in skin5 and subsequent vulnerability to impaired wound healing and infection. Changes in skin with age (Figure 1) include a decline in epidermal and dermal thickness and composition, as well as a decrease in the number of most resident cell types. The dermalepidermal junction is flattened and the microcirculation is diminished6. The latter is defined as blood flow through arterioles, capillaries and venules and is the key system that affects the entire skin surface. In the aging patient, the skin’s microcirculation is reduced by 40 PNPP chemical information between the ages of 20 to 70 years7. The microcirculation provides tissue perfusion, fluid hemostasis, and delivery of oxygen and other nutrients. It also controls temperature and the inflammatory response. Surgical incisions cause disruption of the skin’s microcirculation as manifested by local edema resulting from vasodilation and increased vascular permeability.Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Itay Bentov, M.D., Ph.D., Dept of Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, 325 9th Avenue, Box 359724, Seattle, Washington 98104, Office: 206-744-3934, Fax: 206-744-2089, [email protected]. The authors declare no competing interests. Summary Statement Aged skin is at increased risk of poor post-operative wound healing. Changes in the cutaneous microcirculation with aging contribute to this risk. This review examines the role of anesthesia management on microcirculatory function.Bentov and ReedPagePerioperative management can be modified to optimize the microcirculation. Measures that support the microcirculation include RM-493 manufacturer careful use of fluids, normothermia, pain control and smoking cessation8. Factors that can be influenced by intraoperative management (judicious use of fluids, maintenance of normal body temperature, pain control and increased tissue oxygen tension) have been suggested to be beneficial as well. Most anesthetic agents also influence the microcirculation: a reduction in cardiac output and arterial pressure decreases flow in the microcirculation, while anesthetic induced local micro-vascular changes and vasodilatation can increase perfusion9. Optimization of these variables plays an important role in enhancing the microcirculation in all patients, but is especially relevant if modifications could improve postoperative wound healing in the older population. In this review, we will use skin as a representative organ to describe age-related changes that negatively affect the microcirculation and have subsequent impacts on wound healing and the incidence of postoperative infection. We will then examine the role of anesthesia management in minimizing detrimental effects on the microcirculation. A greater understanding of these variables could promote improvements that lead to better outcomes with respect to wound repair in older patients.NIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manu.Timizing the microcirculation and potentially improving postoperative wound repair in older persons.I. BackgroundSurgical wound repair is a major problem in the older population1, who are at increased risk of wound dehiscence and infection2. As a specific example, surgical site infections (SSI) are common (about 500,000 cases annually in the United States), lead to worse patient outcome (patients who develop SSI are twice as likely to die3), and are an enormous economic burden (1?0 billion dollars annually)4. Many factors contribute to age related changes in skin5 and subsequent vulnerability to impaired wound healing and infection. Changes in skin with age (Figure 1) include a decline in epidermal and dermal thickness and composition, as well as a decrease in the number of most resident cell types. The dermalepidermal junction is flattened and the microcirculation is diminished6. The latter is defined as blood flow through arterioles, capillaries and venules and is the key system that affects the entire skin surface. In the aging patient, the skin’s microcirculation is reduced by 40 between the ages of 20 to 70 years7. The microcirculation provides tissue perfusion, fluid hemostasis, and delivery of oxygen and other nutrients. It also controls temperature and the inflammatory response. Surgical incisions cause disruption of the skin’s microcirculation as manifested by local edema resulting from vasodilation and increased vascular permeability.Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Itay Bentov, M.D., Ph.D., Dept of Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, 325 9th Avenue, Box 359724, Seattle, Washington 98104, Office: 206-744-3934, Fax: 206-744-2089, [email protected]. The authors declare no competing interests. Summary Statement Aged skin is at increased risk of poor post-operative wound healing. Changes in the cutaneous microcirculation with aging contribute to this risk. This review examines the role of anesthesia management on microcirculatory function.Bentov and ReedPagePerioperative management can be modified to optimize the microcirculation. Measures that support the microcirculation include careful use of fluids, normothermia, pain control and smoking cessation8. Factors that can be influenced by intraoperative management (judicious use of fluids, maintenance of normal body temperature, pain control and increased tissue oxygen tension) have been suggested to be beneficial as well. Most anesthetic agents also influence the microcirculation: a reduction in cardiac output and arterial pressure decreases flow in the microcirculation, while anesthetic induced local micro-vascular changes and vasodilatation can increase perfusion9. Optimization of these variables plays an important role in enhancing the microcirculation in all patients, but is especially relevant if modifications could improve postoperative wound healing in the older population. In this review, we will use skin as a representative organ to describe age-related changes that negatively affect the microcirculation and have subsequent impacts on wound healing and the incidence of postoperative infection. We will then examine the role of anesthesia management in minimizing detrimental effects on the microcirculation. A greater understanding of these variables could promote improvements that lead to better outcomes with respect to wound repair in older patients.NIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manu.