Perioperative management for hemicolectomy using propofol infusion in an elderly patient with a mechanical heart valve prosthesis

An 81-year-old female (145 cm, 39 kg) with a mechanical heart valve prosthesis underwent right hemicolectomy for cecal cancer under total intravenous anesthesia. She had received anticoagulation therapy [international normalized ratio (INR) 4.3] with warfarin for two years before surgery due to replaced aortic valve and atrial fibrillation. Three days before surgery warfarin was switched to heparin infusion (400 U.h-1) continued until 3 hours before the surgery. The activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) was maintained above 1.5 times of the control (45 sec). Before induction of anesthesia, the activated clotting time (ACT) was 166 seconds. Following propofol infusion (50 ml.h-1; 38 mg) and vecuronium, anesthesia was maintained with propofol infusion (5.9 mg.kg-1.h-1), buprenorphine i.v. (0.08 mg) and appropriate doses of vecuronium. The total dose of propofol used was 950 mg. Heparin infusion (80 U.h-1) was restarted at the onset of surgery. Intraoperative ACT levels were between 148 and 156 seconds. However, at the end of surgery, APTT was prolonged (60.7 sec). Heparin infusion was reduced to 40 U.h-1 and APTT became normal 3 hours after the surgery. On the 4th postoperative day, heparin infusion was returned to 400 U.h-1 (APTT 32-38 sec). Two days after warfarin restoration on the 15th postoperative day, heparin was discontinued (INR 2.1-2.5). The thromboembolism and bleeding tendency did not occur. This case suggests that despite the suspected bleeding tendency via platelet inhibition under propofol infusion, the reduced heparin infusion can be continued with close coagulation monitoring.