Saudi journal of anaesthesia
-
Several measurement tools have been used for assessment of postoperative pain in pediatric patients. Self-report methods have limitations in younger children and parent, nurse or physician assessment can be used as a surrogate measure. These tools should be tested in different cultures as pain can be influenced by sociocultural factors. The objective was to assess the inter-rater agreement on four different behavioral pain assessment scales in our local population. ⋯ We recommend the use of FLACC scale for assessment by parents, nurses, and doctors in Pakistani children aged between 3 and 7.
-
There continues to be a significant focus on the value of regional and neuraxial anesthesia techniques for adjunctive use when combined with general anesthesia. The reported advantages include decreased patient opiate exposure, decreased medication-related adverse effects, decreased postanesthesia recovery room time and hospital stay, and increased patient satisfaction. ⋯ The potential utility of caudal epidural block as an adjunct to general anesthesia during major hip surgery in adolescents is presented. Factors resulting in a failed block in this patient population as well as the use of the ultrasound as an added modality to increase block success are reviewed.
-
Acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II (APACHE II) is one of the most general classification systems of disease severity in Intensive Care Units and Glasgow Coma Score (GCS) is one of the most specific ones. ⋯ The survivors had significantly lower APACHE II and higher GCS compared with non-survivors, also GCS showed more predictive accuracy than APACHE II in prognosticating the outcomes in PACU.
-
[This corrects the article on p. 3 in vol. 9, PMID: 25558190.].
-
Central venous cannulation (CVC) is frequently required during the management of patients with liver disease with deranged conventional coagulation parameters (CCP). Since CVC is known to be associated with vascular complications, it is standard practice to transfuse Fresh-Frozen Plasma or platelets to correct CCP. These CCP may not reflect true coagulopathy in liver disease. Additionally CVC when performed under ultrasound guidance (USG-CVC) in itself reduces the incidence of complications. ⋯ Ultrasound guidance -CVC in liver disease patients with deranged coagulation is a safe and highly successful modality.