Anesthesia and analgesia
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Jan 2006
Case ReportsFires in the operating room and intensive care unit: awareness is the key to prevention.
Recent recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to use alcohol-based substances for hand hygiene and skin antisepsis could introduce new fire hazards in the operating room (OR). This potential for an increase in the number of fires in the hospital setting with wide spread use of alcohol-based agents warrants heightened awareness of the risks and implementation of safety measures when using these agents. Here, we report a patient who, during a tracheostomy, sustained severe burns resulting from a fire in the OR. In this case, the use of an alcohol-based antiseptic was the major contributing factor to the surgical fire.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Jan 2006
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyDexamethasone added to lidocaine prolongs axillary brachial plexus blockade.
Different additives have been used to prolong regional blockade. We designed a prospective, randomized, double-blind study to evaluate the effect of dexamethasone added to lidocaine on the onset and duration of axillary brachial plexus block. Sixty patients scheduled for elective hand and forearm surgery under axillary brachial plexus block were randomly allocated to receive either 34 mL lidocaine 1.5% with 2 mL of isotonic saline chloride (control group, n = 30) or 34 mL lidocaine 1.5% with 2 mL of dexamethasone (8 mg) (dexamethasone group, n = 30). ⋯ The duration of surgery and the onset times of sensory and motor block were similar in the two groups. The duration of sensory (242 +/- 76 versus 98 +/- 33 min) and motor (310 +/- 81 versus 130 +/- 31 min) blockade were significantly longer in the dexamethasone than in the control group (P < 0.01). We conclude that the addition of dexamethasone to lidocaine 1.5% solution in axillary brachial plexus block prolongs the duration of sensory and motor blockade.