A & A case reports
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Extracorporeal life support may be used in patients with refractory cardiogenic shock. The femoral venoarterial route can be used for implanting cannulae in patients who are hemodynamically unstable. ⋯ The procedure was performed using 40 mL of a 50:50 mixture of 0.5% levobupivacaine and 2% lidocaine (30 mL for transversus abdominis plane and 10 mL for genitofemoral block) associated with low-dose remifentanil infusion during spontaneous breathing. A left ventricular assist device was successfully implanted 4 days later.
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Various equipment malfunctions of anesthesia gas delivery systems have been previously reported. Our profession increasingly uses technology as a means to prevent these errors. We report a case of a near-total anesthesia circuit obstruction that went undetected before the induction of anesthesia despite the use of automated machine check technology. This case highlights that automated machine check modules can fail to detect severe equipment failure and demonstrates how, even in this era of expanding technology, manual checks still remain essential components of safe care.
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Understanding the functioning of modern anesthesia workstations is very important because workstation failures in the intraoperative period may place the patient at risk of perioperative hypoxia and lead to unnecessary anxiety and confusion among anesthesia care providers. We present and simulate a critical event leading to Dräger Fabius GS ventilator failure.
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Current literature reports a 3.1% incidence of durotomy with spine surgery, and this number increases to 15.9% with revision spine surgery. With the use of a blood patch to treat a dural tear, the anesthesia team was able to prevent a second reoperation. This treatment option offers anesthesiologists the opportunity to minimize further patient harm and increased cost associated with dural tears.