A&A practice
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Perioperative bronchospasm is a common challenge to anesthetic care. The timely delivery of inhaled medications can be challenging, particularly in pediatric patients and in locations where dedicated resources and respiratory support teams are limited. The delivery of nebulized medication to an intubated patient in the operating room can be difficult. We present an innovative method for delivery of nebulized solutions, in which a jet nebulizer is paired with a Mapleson hyperinflation system.
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Case Reports
Anesthetic Management of Robotic Thymectomy in a Patient With Morvan Syndrome: A Case Report.
Morvan syndrome (MvS) is a rare acquired paraneoplastic autoimmune neuromyotonia with central and autonomic nervous system involvement that has been incompletely described in the literature. We describe the successful administration of general anesthesia for robotic thymectomy to an MvS patient with severe encephalopathy, cardiac dysautonomia, and peripheral nerve hyperexcitation. Importantly, thymus removal provided effective source control with eventual resolution of MvS symptoms. MvS is briefly reviewed and novel observations are described of related interactions between nondepolarizing neuromuscular blockade (NDNMB) and bispectral index (BIS).
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The incidence of hip fractures in the United States is increasing as the population ages. Elderly patients are more likely to have extensive comorbidities, which contribute to long-term consequences after a hip fracture. These patients often experience permanent disability, restrictions in activities of daily life, higher rates of depression, cardiovascular disease, and mortality rate. The authors describe a combination of peripheral nerve blocks to provide surgical anesthesia for corrective hip surgery in 5 high-risk patients.
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Review Case Reports
Case Report of Remifentanil Labor Analgesia for a Pregnant Patient With Congenital Methemoglobinemia Type 1.
Congenital methemoglobinemia is a rare disease characterized by cyanosis and a left shifting of the oxyhemoglobin dissociation curve. The disease necessitates avoidance of certain medications commonly used in obstetrics, making labor analgesia and anesthesia challenging. ⋯ Continuous real-time monitoring of methemoglobin concentrations may prove to be a useful monitor in future care settings. A review of literature encompassing various perioperative and obstetric anesthesia and analgesia management considerations is presented.
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Extracardiac intrapericardial masses arising posterior to left atrium (LA) often mimic an intracardiac LA mass on echocardiography. Although transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) is the primary screening tool to detect any cardiac mass, transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) is proven superior to TTE in delineating the size, morphology, and exact site of origin of LA masses. We report a case, where the preoperative TTE diagnosed an LA mass which was later confirmed to be an extracardiac intrapericardial mass by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging and intraoperative TEE. The mass was compressing the LA, and the timely diagnosis avoided the opening of the LA for mass excision.