Early chest tube removal on the 1st postoperative day protocol of an enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery programme is safe

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to assess the safety of early chest tube removal (CTR) protocol on the 1st postoperative day (POD1) of our Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) programme by comparing the risk of postoperative pneumothorax, pleural and pericardial effusion requiring intervention and hospital mortality. METHODS: All consecutive patients undergoing elective coronary revascularization and/or valve surgery between 2015 and 2021 were assessed in terms of their perioperative management pathways: conventional standard of care (control group) versus standardized systematic perioperative ERAS programme including an early CTR on POD1 (ERAS group). A propensity score matching was applied. The primary end-point was a composite of postoperative pneumothorax, pleural and pericardial effusion requiring intervention and hospital mortality. RESULTS: A total of 3153 patients were included. Propensity score analysis resulted in 2 groups well-matched pairs of 1026 patients. CTR on POD1 was significantly increased from 29.5% in the control group to 70.3% in the ERAS group (P < 0.001). The incidence of the primary end-point was 6.4% in the control group and 6.9% in the ERAS group (P = 0.658). Patients in the ERAS group, as compared with control group, had significant lower incidence of bronchopneumonia (9.0% vs 13.5%; P = 0.001) and higher incidence of mechanical ventilation <= 6 h (84.6% vs 65.2%; P < 0.001), length of intensive care unit <= 1 day (61.2% vs 50.8%; P < 0.001) and hospital <= 6 days (67.3% vs.43.2%; P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: CTR on POD1 protocol can be safely incorporated into a standardized systematic ERAS programme, enabling early mobilization, and contributing to the improvement of postoperative outcomes.