The use of depth of anesthesia monitoring, such as a processed electroencephalogram (pEEG), can decrease the risk of awareness with recall, yet the current standards for monitoring during the administration of anesthesia do not include the use of brain monitoring for anesthetic depth. This retrospective cohort study describes the frequency of use and explores the characteristics of utilization of pEEG monitoring by anesthesia professionals during the administration of general anesthesia in the adult patient population at a large academic medical center. Descriptive associations with pEEG monitoring were confirmed in both univariate and multivariable analyses with multiple patient, anesthetic, and surgical characteristics. After taking anesthesia provider, patient, anesthetic, and surgical characteristics into consideration, 38.0% of the variability in pEEG use was accounted for. Although these data suggest recommended guidelines are being followed, further analyses should examine explicit relationships and differences in pEEG use.
Keywords: general anesthesia; neuromuscular antagonists; processed electroencephalography; total intravenous anesthesia; unintended awareness.
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