Acta anaesthesiologica Scandinavica
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Acta Anaesthesiol Scand · Feb 2007
Case ReportsCervical epidural analgesia via a thoracic approach using nerve-stimulation guidance in adult patients undergoing total shoulder replacement surgery.
Continuous cervical epidural anesthesia can provide excellent peri- and post-operative analgesia, although several factors prevent its widespread use. Advancing catheters from thoracic levels to the cervical region may circumvent these barriers, provided they are accurately positioned. We hypothesize that guiding catheters from thoracic to cervical regions using low-current epidural stimulation will have a high success rate and enable excellent analgesia in adults undergoing total shoulder arthroplasty. ⋯ This epidural technique provided highly effective post-operative analgesia in a patient group that traditionally experiences severe post-operative pain and can benefit from early mobilization.
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Acta Anaesthesiol Scand · Feb 2007
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter StudyDoes esomeprazole prevent post-operative nausea and vomiting?
Esomeprazole is a potent proton pump inhibitor (PPI), reducing acid production as well as gastric juice volume. This study evaluated the possible beneficial effect of esomeprazole on reducing post-operative nausea and vomiting (PONV). ⋯ Esomeprazole had no clinically relevant effect on the overall 24-h incidence of PONV. However, esomeprazole significantly reduced the total amount of vomit during 24-h post-operatively. This may be of value in patients with an increased risk of pulmonary aspiration.
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Acta Anaesthesiol Scand · Feb 2007
The functional status and perceived quality of life in long-term survivors of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.
Limited data exist on how long-term survivors after pre-hospital cardiac arrest lead their lives. This study assessed functional status and perceived quality of life in patients surviving for 15 years after successful resuscitation from witnessed out-of-hospital cardiac arrest as a result of ventricular fibrillation. ⋯ Once good outcome after cardiac arrest is achieved, it can be maintained for more than 10 years.
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Acta Anaesthesiol Scand · Feb 2007
Therapeutic hypothermia after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest: experiences with patients treated with percutaneous coronary intervention and cardiogenic shock.
Therapeutic hypothermia has been shown to increase survival after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). The trials documenting such benefit excluded patients with cardiogenic shock and only a few patients were treated with percutaneous coronary intervention prior to admission to an intensive care unit (ICU). We use therapeutic hypothermia whenever cardiac arrest patients do not wake up immediately after return of spontaneous circulation. ⋯ In OHCA survivors who reached our hospital, the survival rate was high and the neurological outcome acceptable. Our results indicate that the use of therapeutic hypothermia is justified even in haemodynamically unstable patients and those treated with percutaneous coronary intervention.
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Acta Anaesthesiol Scand · Feb 2007
Measurement properties of the short form 36 and health-related quality of life after intensive care in Morocco.
Intensive care patients have a health-related quality of life (HRQL) that differs from the normal population. The aim of this study was to evaluate the measurement properties of the Arabic version of the short form (SF)-36 and study the HRQL determinants in adult patients 3 months after discharge from an intensive care unit (ICU). ⋯ The Arabic version of the SF-36 appears to be a robust tool in ICU. Background variables are the only significant determinants of HRQL 3 months after medical ICU discharge.