The Effect of Obesity on the Incidence of Postoperative Cognitive Dysfunction in Gynecological Day-case Surgery

Cognitive dysfunction is the impairment of mental process of perception. memory and information processing which allow the human to acquire knowledge and plan for the future. The etiology of Post operative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) is unclear and seems to be multifactorial involving a combination of patient, surgical, anesthetic and environmental factors. It can be a manifestation of transient or permanent cerebral injury. While cognitive function tends to improve overmonths to years postoperatively in affected individuals, some proportion has seemingly permanent cognitive injury. Most of the studies of POCD, however, have methodological difficulties, as pointed out by Newman and colleagues in their review of more than 40 studies.

The overweight/obese population has been steadily increasing worldwide. According to the WHO, with1.3 billion overweight (25 < body mass index [BMI] < 30) people and 600 million obese (BMI > 30) people in the world, the obesity rate exceeds10% for both genders and has more than doubled during the past 40 years. Furthermore, It considered as seven of the top10 causes of death / physical disability and chronic disorders such as cancer and diabetes, which are closely related to obesity.

The definition of day surgery in Great Britain and Ireland is clear; the patient is admitted and discharged on the same day, with day surgery as the intended management. The term '23-h stay' is used in the United states healthcare system. Obesity itself is not a contraindication to day surgery, as morbidly obese patients can be safely managed by experts, provided appropriate resources are available. This includes factoring in additional time for anaesthesia and surgery as well as the presence of skilled assistants and equipment.

The incidence of complications during the operation or in the early recovery phase is greater in patients with increasing body mass index. However, these problems would still occur with inpatient care and have usually resolved or been successfully treated by the time a day-case patient would be discharged. In addition, obese patients benefit from short-duration anaesthetic techniques and early mobilisation associated with day surgery.

Our study will aim to assess the early cognitive dysfunction after general anesthesia in normal weight patients, overweight and mild obese patients in gynacological day-case surgery.