Current opinion in anaesthesiology
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Curr Opin Anaesthesiol · Jun 2008
ReviewInfection associated with central venous or epidural catheters: how to reduce it?
Central venous catheters are a leading source of nosocomial bloodstream infection with an estimated 10% mortality. Infection associated with epidural catheterization is an uncommon but devastating complication. Diagnosis of spinal epidural abscess requires a high index of suspicion and imaging techniques such as MRI. Early diagnosis and treatment will minimize permanent damage, but primary prevention should be the aim, which depends on proper patient evaluation and use of full aseptic precautions. ⋯ Healthcare worker education and training are essential to create standardization of aseptic care. Continuous surveillance is necessary for identifying lapses in infection-control practices.
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The control of pain after scoliosis surgery is a real challenge for the anesthesiologist. The first reason is that major spine surgery for correction of scoliosis deformation causes severe postoperative pain, and second that patients undergoing these operations are most often children or adolescents who are known to suffer from increased pain sensation compared with adults. ⋯ Significant improvements have been made in the control of postoperative pain after correction of scoliosis deformation in recent years. The introduction of epidural analgesia has cleared the way for better analgesic techniques in this surgical context. Properly performed and assessed, the addition of epidural analgesia after scoliosis surgery is a safe and effective form of analgesia and the benefits far outweigh the risks.
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The present review describes new trends and ongoing controversies in the anesthetic care of liver transplant recipients. ⋯ Anesthetic management still varies widely between liver transplant centers with little data to indicate best practice. Future research should focus on fluid replacement, prevention and treatment of coagulopathy, care of the acutely ill patient and the safety and benefits of early extubation.
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Clinical practices in oxygen administration are in need of change based on the increasing understanding of oxygen toxicity. Hypoxemia is due to many pathophysiological causes; avoiding hypoxemia is an important objective during neonatal anesthesia. Nevertheless, the only known cause for hyperoxemia is the excess and unnecessary administration of oxygen by healthcare providers. To avoid hyperoxemia is an important objective during neonatal anesthesia. ⋯ Even brief neonatal exposures to pure oxygen must be avoided during neonatal anesthesia. When any dose of supplemental oxygen is given, a reliable pulse oximeter aiming to avoid hyperoxemia is necessary. Even though further research is essential, administration of oxygen by healthcare providers when it is not necessary is a foe and a neonatal health hazard.
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Curr Opin Anaesthesiol · Jun 2008
ReviewNeuromuscular and mitochondrial disorders: what is relevant to the anaesthesiologist?
The review provides an up-to-date information to the anaesthesiologist about the more frequent and important neuromuscular disorders for which new basic insights or clinical implications have been reported. ⋯ The increased understanding of the genetics and pathophysiology of common muscle disorders may lead to a decrease in life-threatening complications related to surgery and anaesthesia. However, there is still a lack of prospective clinical studies to determine which is the safest anaesthetic technique for these patients.