A&A practice
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Flecainide is a first-line antiarrhythmic drug used to treat atrial arrhythmias and/or supraventricular tachycardia in those without coronary artery disease or structural heart disease. Even though it is an older antiarrhythmic, flecainide accounted for 1.6 million prescriptions in the United States in 2016, and its utilization is generally increasing. Despite its popularity, flecainide may predispose patients to rapid atrial flutter with resultant hemodynamic compromise, particularly in the physiologically stressful perioperative period. This article reviews the pharmacology of flecainide, describes problematic arrhythmias that may arise specifically during flecainide use, and offers recommendations for perioperative flecainide management.
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Review Case Reports
A Case Report of the Anesthetic Management of a Parturient With Congenital Hypofibrinogenemia and Complete Placenta Previa.
A multidisciplinary approach among the obstetric, hematological, pharmaceutical, nursing, and anesthetic team proved essential for the successful peripartum management of a gravida 3, para 2 female with a new diagnosis of congenital hypofibrinogenemia complicated by a complete placenta previa. The patient presented to labor and delivery triage with vaginal bleeding. This case report describes the management of this parturient and presents a review of the literature available for the anesthetic management of parturients with congenital hypofibrinogenemia.
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Review Case Reports
Perioperative Multidisciplinary Delirium Prevention: A Longitudinal Case Report.
Postoperative delirium is associated with accelerated cognitive decline, mortality, and high health care costs. The importance of perioperative risk identification is increasingly recognized but optimal prevention strategies are still evolving. ⋯ We discuss how a comprehensive preoperative cognitive assessment successfully informed perioperative decision making, including anesthetic management and postoperative multimodal delirium prevention strategies by geriatric medicine. The case exemplifies how coordinated interdisciplinary team management may reduce postoperative delirium in high-risk individuals.
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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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Patient care duties will expose health care workers to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Many are concerned about subsequent household exposure to their families, particularly those family members with high risk of complications or mortality, potentiating additional community spread. ⋯ The design is simple, expedient, and can be built with locally sourced inexpensive supplies. A viewing and access window facilitates safe family interaction and decreases the emotional costs of isolation while providing a route to pass items as necessary.