AN AUDIT OF ORAL AND MAXILLOFACIAL PROCEDURES UNDER GENERAL ANAESTHESIA AT THE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE HOSPITAL IBADAN,...

Operating theatre time management is a constant source of tension among the healthcare professionals responsible for the use of the facility. It is important that all effort should be geared at optimal utilization of available resources and minimization of waste.

To appraise time management, frequency and duration of surgical procedures, frequency and determinants of blood transfusion in oral and maxillofacial surgery.

Prospective clinical study.

The University College Hospital, Ibadan. Nigeria.

This was a cross-sectional study of consecutive patients who had maxillofacial surgical procedures. Information was collected on number of cases scheduled per list, number of cases done per list, each patient's biodata, time intervals between patient arrival and departure from operating theatre, route and duration of intubation, type of surgical procedure, surgical time, preoperative and postoperative packed cell volume estimations, volume of blood loss and the frequency and volume of blood transfusions.

The main points of delay were identified as the patient wait at the theatre reception and in the operating suite before intubation. Mandibulectomy procedures were the longest procedures with approximately five (5) hours, followed by maxillectomy with four (4) hours and maxillofacial trauma with three and a half (3.5) hours. Maxillectomy procedures had highest transfusion probability. The surgical time and the estimated blood loss significantly determined whether a patient would be transfused or not. The nasotracheal was the commonest route of intubation while cleft surgeries were the most frequent procedures performed followed by trauma surgeries. Majority of the patients were not transfused and two units of blood was the most frequent transfused volume for a patient.

The main areas of delay have been identified as patients' waiting periods before the surgical procedures. The reasons why these delays occur need to be investigated and addressed to have an optimally functional facility. Reservation of blood for maxillofacial surgical procedures should be based on the anticipated need for blood transfusion for the particular procedure.