Effects of Combined Epidural Anesthesia and General Anesthesia on Cognitive Function and Stress Responses of Elderly Patients Undergoing Liver Cancer Surgery

This study aimed at exploring the effects of combined epidural anesthesia and general anesthesia on the cognitive function and stress responses of elderly patients undergoing liver cancer surgery. One hundred and fifteen elderly patients were enrolled as research subjects. They were admitted to our hospital and underwent liver cancer surgery from August 2017 to May 2019. Fifty five cases were treated with general anesthesia (GA) (GA group), while the other sixty cases were treated with combined epidural anesthesia and general anesthesia (joint group). Scoring standards of Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) were used to evaluate the patients before and after operation. Their operating time, total fluid input (TFI), spontaneous breathing recovery time (SBRT), preoperative and postoperative indices of stress responses (epinephrine (EPI), cortisol (Cor), and norepinephrine (NE)), and postoperative adverse reactions were observed. There were statistically significant differences between the two groups with respect to anesthesia time, TFI, postoperative SBRT, and postoperative directional recovery time (DRT) (cP < 0.05). There was no difference in operating time, total fluid loss (TFL), and hospitalization time (P > 0.05). After operation, patients in both groups experienced a cognitive decline of different degrees and the MMSE scores decreased. There was no significant difference in the score between the two groups before operation and 3 days and 7 days after operation (P > 0.05). The score was significantly better in the joint group than that in the GA group at 6 hours and 1 day after operation (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in levels of EPI, Cor, and NE between the two groups before operation (P > 0.05), but there were significant differences after operation. The total incidence of postoperative adverse reactions was 11.67% in the joint group and 25.45% in the GA group. In conclusion, combined epidural anesthesia and general anesthesia can significantly reduce postoperative cognitive dysfunction and inhibit postoperative stress responses in elderly patients undergoing liver cancer surgery. It has good application value in clinical practice.