Canadian journal of anaesthesia = Journal canadien d'anesthésie
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Comparative Study
Use of colour Doppler and M-mode ultrasonography to confirm the location of an epidural catheter - a retrospective case series.
Epidural anesthesia and analgesia has a reported failure rate ranging from 13% to 32%. We describe a technique using colour Doppler and M-mode ultrasonography to determine the position of the epidural catheter after placement in adults. ⋯ Our preliminary data suggest the feasibility of using colour Doppler and M-mode ultrasonography to confirm proper epidural catheter placement.
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Airway management outside the operating room is associated with increased risks compared with airway management inside the operating room. Moreover, airway management-whether in the intensive care unit, emergency department, interventional radiology suite, or general wards-often requires mastery of not only the anatomically difficult airway but also the physiologically and situationally difficult airway. The 2015 Difficult Airway Society Guidelines encourage the airway team to "stop and think". ⋯ To counter the challenges of airway management outside the operating room, we offer a mnemonic that combines both technical and non-technical insights summarized using the seven letters of the word PREPARE (P: pre-oxygenate/position; R: reset/resist; E: examine/explicit; P: plan A/B; A: adjust/attention; R: remain/review; E: exit/explore). We hope it can unite potentially disparate personnel with a structure that allows them to make acute decisions, coordinate action, and communicate unequivocally. This multidisciplinary publication also hopes to encourage common understanding and language between anesthesiologists and non-anesthesiologists about the perils of airway management outside the operating room and the importance of airway teamwork.
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Awake craniotomy (AC), defined as the performance of at least part of an open cranial procedure with the patient awake, has been tied to beneficial outcomes compared with similar surgery under general anesthesia. Improved anesthetic techniques have made a major contribution to the increasing popularity of AC. However, the heterogeneity of practice among institutions doing large numbers of ACs raises questions (often among those who only occasionally perform AC - i.e., practitioners in low-volume AC institutions) as to the ideal anesthetic technique for AC. ⋯ In this narrative review, the technical nuances of 13 aspects of anesthetic care for AC are discussed based on institutional preferences and available evidence, and the various controversies and research priorities are discussed. The skills, experience, and commitment of both the surgeon and the anesthesiologist are large variables that are likely more important than what the literature suggests about "best" techniques for AC. Optimizing patient outcome is the fundamental goal of the anesthesiologist.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Optimal propofol induction dose in morbidly obese patients: A randomized controlled trial comparing the bispectral index and lean body weight scalar.
Propofol dosing based on total body weight (TBW) can lead to overdosing in morbidly obese (MO) patients. Our aim was to determine whether an induction dose of propofol based on a bispectral index (BIS) target is better for achieving loss of consciousness in MO patients than dosing based on lean body weight (LBW). ⋯ The induction dose of propofol based on the BIS index was different from the induction dose based on LBW in MO patients. Patients in the LBW group required additional propofol to achieve an OAA/S of 0.
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To present a case of mycobacterium infection transmitted through a heater-cooler unit during cardiac bypass surgery. ⋯ Heater-cooler units manufactured by LivaNova prior to September 2014 and used during cardiopulmonary bypass have been linked to M. chimera, which causes a latent infection that may be activated and become disseminated in cases of immunosuppression related to steroid use.