Routine preoperative testing in elective surgery: What is the evidence?

Abstract

Any patient, who is undergoing a surgical or invasive procedure, requiring anesthesia or sedation, needs a preoperative evaluation. This is essential in any type of surgical procedure. Most of the times, clinical evaluation is sufficient to establish perioperative as well as patient's risk factors. Some of them may be modified during the period close to the intervention, without supplementary testing or consultation to others specialists. Currently, the tendency of specialists is request "routine preoperative testing" sometimes without a previous analysis of the clinical history and physical examination. It has been shown that a healthy young patient, undergoing elective surgery, does not need any test before surgery. Preoperative tests increases health costs and don't significantly change perioperative patient's morbidity and mortality. Tests such as chest X-ray, electrocardiogram, hematocrit/hemoglobin, coagulation test, platelet count, blood glucose and pregnancy tests have precise indications and should not routinely be requested to all the surgical population