Anesthesia and analgesia
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Feb 2017
Review Meta AnalysisClinical Performance and Safety of Closed-Loop Systems: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.
Automated systems can improve the stability of controlled variables and reduce the workload in clinical practice without increasing the risks to patients. We conducted this review and meta-analysis to assess the clinical performance of closed-loop systems compared with manual control. Our primary outcome was the accuracy of closed-loop systems in comparison with manual control to maintain a given variable in a desired target range. ⋯ We observed a significant reduction of episodes of overshooting and undershooting when closed-loop systems were used. The use of automated systems can result in better control of a given target within a selected range. There was a decrease of overshooting or undershooting of a given target with closed-loop systems.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Feb 2017
Review Meta Analysis Comparative StudyComparison of Supraclavicular and Infraclavicular Brachial Plexus Block: A Systemic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.
Supraclavicular (SC) and infraclavicular (IC) brachial plexus block (BPB) are commonly used for upper extremity surgery. Recent clinical studies have compared the effect of SC- and IC-BPB, but there have been controversies over spread of sensory blockade in each of the 4 peripheral nerve branches of brachial plexus. ⋯ This meta-analysis demonstrated that IC-BPB showed a significantly high incidence of incomplete radial nerve sensory block at 30 minutes, which may be avoided by double or triple injection. Furthermore, IC-BPB with multiple injection technique showed significantly lower incidence of incomplete ulnar block than SC-BPB. There were no differences in the incidence of successful blockade, block onset, and duration of analgesia between SC- and IC-BPB. Procedure-related paresthesia/pain and adjacent nerve-related complications were more frequent in SC-BPB. However, because of the small sample size, publication bias remains a concern when interpreting our results. Further studies with sufficient sample size and reporting large number of outcomes are required.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Feb 2017
Observational StudyExpiratory Flow Limitation as a Risk Factor for Pulmonary Complications After Major Abdominal Surgery.
Postoperative pulmonary complications are major causes of postoperative morbidity and mortality. Although several risk factors have been associated with postoperative pulmonary complications, they are not consistent between studies and, even in those studies in which these factors were identified, the predictive power is low. We hypothesized that postoperative pulmonary complications would correlate with the presence of intraoperative expiratory flow limitation. ⋯ Our results show that intraoperative expiratory flow limitation correlates with that of postoperative pulmonary complication after major abdominal surgery. Further work is needed to better understand the relevance of expiratory flow limitation on postoperative pulmonary outcomes.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Feb 2017
ReviewIntravenous Ketamine Infusions for Neuropathic Pain Management: A Promising Therapy in Need of Optimization.
Intravenous ketamine infusions have been used extensively to treat often-intractable neuropathic pain conditions. Because there are many widely divergent ketamine infusion protocols described in the literature, the variation in these protocols presents a challenge for direct comparison of one protocol with another and in discerning an optimal protocol. Careful examination of the published literature suggests that ketamine infusions can be useful to treat neuropathic pain and that certain characteristics of ketamine infusions may be associated with better clinical outcomes. ⋯ Therefore, despite common clinical practice, the current state of the literature leaves the use of ketamine infusions without meaningful guidance from high-quality comparative evidence. The objectives of this topical review are to (1) analyze the available clinical evidence related to ketamine infusion protocols and (2) call for clinical studies to identify optimal ketamine infusion protocols tailored for individual neuropathic pain conditions. The Oxford Center for Evidence-Based Medicine classification for levels of evidence was used to stratify the grades of clinical recommendation for each infusion variable studied.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Feb 2017
Predicting Fluid Responsiveness in Acute Liver Failure: A Prospective Study.
The profound hemodynamic changes seen in acute liver failure (ALF) resemble the hyperdynamic state found in the later stages of septic shock. Vasopressor support frequently is required after initial volume therapy. Markers of preload dependency have not been studied in this patient group. Dynamic maneuvers such as passive leg raising or end-expiratory hold, which have shown good predictive accuracy in a general intensive care unit population, cannot be considered safe in this cohort because of the concerns of intracranial hypertension. ⋯ PPV based on pulse contour analysis predicted fluid responsiveness in ALF.