Metabolic Equivalent of Task (MET) in the Preoperative Assessment in Aortic Surgery

Aortic Diseases

Reliable prediction of the preoperative risk is of crucial importance for patients undergoing vascular operations. The assessment of the metabolic equivalent of task (MET) is an easy clinical evaluation of the functional capacity of an individual. A MET is defined as the resting metabolic rate, that is the amount of the consumed oxygen at rest. According to the MET concept a patient would be considered as fit for surgery when the stairs of two flights can be climbed and the housework can be fully managed by oneself. Hypothesis: Patients with a functional capacity over 4 MET (fit for surgery) have less perioperative complications with the focus on cardiac pathology than patients with less than 4 MET during aortic operations. Patients and Method: Retrospective analysis of a single center unit of 296 patients undergoing open or endovascular aortic repair.