Effect of high‐flow nasal oxygen on postoperative oxygenation in obese patients: A randomized controlled trial

Background and Aim Postoperative hypoxemia is common after general anesthesia in obese patients. We investigated if early application of high‐flow nasal oxygen (HFNO) improved postoperative oxygenation in obese patients compared with standard oxygen therapy following general anesthesia for laparoscopic bariatric surgery. Methods This was an open labeled randomized controlled trial conducted at a university hospital in Sweden between October 23, 2018 and February 11, 2020. The study was performed as a substudy within a previously published trial. After ethics committee approval and written informed consent, 40 obese patients (body mass index [BMI] ≥ 35 kg m−2) scheduled for laparoscopic bariatric surgery were randomized to receive oxygen using a standard low‐flow nasal cannula (NC group) or HFNO at 40 L min−1 (HF group) immediately upon arrival to the post‐anesthesia care unit. Flow rate (NC group) or FiO2 (HF group) was titrated to reach an initial SpO2 of 95%–98% after which settings were left unchanged. The primary outcome was PaO2 at 60 min following postoperative baseline values. Secondary outcomes included PaCO2, SpO2, hemodynamic variables, and patient self‐assessed discomfort. Results Thirty‐four patients were available for analysis. PaO2 was similar between groups at postoperative baseline. After 60 min, PaO2 had increased to 12.6 ± 2.8 kPa in the NC group (n = 15) and 14.0 ± 2.7 kPa in the HF group (n = 19); (mean difference 1.4 kPa, 95% confidence interval −0.6 to 3.3; p = 0.16). There were no differences in PaCO2, hemodynamic variables, or self‐assessed discomfort between groups after 60 min. Conclusion In obese patients, HFNO did not improve postoperative short‐term oxygenation compared with standard low‐flow oxygen following general anesthesia for laparoscopic bariatric surgery.