Anaesthesia
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Multicenter Study
Renal replacement therapy for acute renal failure: a survey of practice in adult intensive care units in the United Kingdom.
This study surveyed current practice in adult intensive care units in the United Kingdom in three key areas of renal replacement therapy when used for acute renal failure: type of therapy used, typical treatment dose and anticoagulation. Responses were received from 303 (99%) of the 306 intensive care units. 269 units (89%) provide renal replacement therapy for acute renal failure. Most (65%) use continuous veno-venous haemofiltration as first-line therapy in the majority of patients, though continuous veno-venous haemodiafiltration is used by 31% of units. ⋯ Dosage and monitoring of these two agents vary markedly between units. No units use citrate anticoagulation. These results reveal a wide variety of practice in the delivery of renal replacement therapy between intensive care units in the United Kingdom.
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Clinical Trial
An evaluation of conscious sedation using propofol and remifentanil for tension-free vaginal tape insertion.
Tension-free vaginal tape insertion is a recommended treatment for stress incontinence. There is evidence that intra-operative testing of continence by asking patients to cough may improve outcomes, but an optimal sedation regimen has not been determined. We prospectively evaluated the effectiveness of propofol and remifentanil infusions in 25 patients using pre- and post-sedation peak cough pressures and pain scores. ⋯ Pain scores (median, IQR [range]) were low for local anaesthetic infiltration (0, [0-1]) and first (0, [0-1]) and second (0, [0-3.5]) needle insertions. Of the 19 patients completing the ISAS, all felt safe and satisfied. Sedation using propofol and remifentanil provides acceptable analgesia, satisfaction and effective continence testing.