Anesthesiology clinics of North America
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Anesthesiol Clin North America · Jun 2005
Comparative StudyClinical outcomes in cardiac surgery: conventional surgery versus bloodless surgery.
Bleeding during and after cardiac operations and the effects of cardiopulmonary bypass hemodilution commonly result in blood transfusions. Excessive microvascular bleeding can result in re-exploration and prolonged hospitalization. ⋯ The large demand for blood products places significant pressure on the national blood supply, resulting in frequent shortages. The variability in transfusion practice of cardiac surgery patients suggests that sound blood management and a conservative approach to this population can result in reduced transfusions without increasing morbidity or mortality and avoiding complications associated with allogeneic blood transfusion.
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Anesthesiol Clin North America · Mar 2005
ReviewConsequences of inadequate postoperative pain relief and chronic persistent postoperative pain.
Inadequately controlled pain has undesirable physiologic and psychologic consequences such as increased postoperative morbidity, delayed recovery, a delayed return to normal daily living, and reduced patient satisfaction. Importantly, the lack of adequate postoperative pain treatment may lead to persistent pain after surgery, which is often overlooked. Overall, inadequate pain management increases the use of health care resources and health care costs. This article reviews the physiologic and psychologic consequences of inadequately treated pain, with an emphasis on chronic persistent postoperative pain.
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Anesthesiol Clin North America · Mar 2005
ReviewPostoperative care of the chronic opioid-consuming patient.
Recently, there has been a significant increase in the use of opioid analgesics for chronic pain in the outpatient setting. As a result, anesthesiologists are commonly presented with the dilemma of treating acute postoperative pain in patients who do not receive adequate analgesia with conventional doses of opioid. This article presents a practical approach to treating postoperative pain in the chronic opioid-consuming patient. Specifically, a technique based on pharmacokinetic modeling is described that predicts safe and therapeutic opioid dosing in these patients.
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There is increased awareness of the need for effective postoperative analgesia in infants and young children. A multi-modal approach to preventing and treating pain usually is used. Mild analgesics, local and regional analgesia, and opioids when indicated, frequently are combined to minimize adverse effects of individual drugs or techniques.
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Anesthesiol Clin North America · Mar 2005
ReviewRole of analgesic adjuncts in postoperative pain management.
Postoperative pain remains a major problem. A multi-modal analgesic approach is recommended to optimize pain management and reduce opiate-related adverse effects. Several analgesic adjuncts have been investigated, and many have proved to have a useful analgesic effect. This article reviews the literature regarding use of analgesic adjuncts in the perioperative period.