Cardiovascular Evaluation and Care for Noncardiac Surgery: Revised Guidelines

Background and Purpose: These guidelines represent an update to those published in 2002 and provide a framework for considering the cardiac risk of noncardiac surgery. New tables and algorithms provide quick references for decision making regarding treatment and testing. A principal message of the revised document is that the need for intervention is indicated by cardiovascular findings and rarely just to lower the surgical risk.

Key Points:

1. Because the goal of the preoperative cardiovascular evaluation is the optimal care of the patient, no test should be performed unless it is intended to influence patient treatment.

2. The presence of one or more major cl…