Articles: function.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Feb 2014
Observational StudyPlatelet Dysfunction as Measured by a Point-of-Care Monitor is an Independent Predictor of High Blood Loss in Cardiac Surgery.
Excessive bleeding carries a heavy burden of illness in cardiac surgery. Although platelet dysfunction is considered to be an important cause, it is not routinely measured. Our objective was to explore the relationship between platelet dysfunction and blood loss in cardiac surgery. ⋯ Platelet dysfunction, as measured by a point-of-care method during rewarming and postprotamine, is independently associated with high blood loss in cardiac surgery. Additional studies are needed to determine whether the incorporation of this assay into blood management algorithms might help rationalize blood transfusion therapy, potentially reducing blood loss and improving clinical outcomes.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Feb 2014
The Importance of Subjective Facial Appearance on the Ability of Anesthesiologists to Predict Difficult Intubation.
Previously we demonstrated that a computer algorithm based on bedside airway examinations and facial photographs accurately classified easy and difficult airways. The extent of the ability of anesthesiologists to perform the same task is unknown. We hypothesized that providing photographs would add to the predictive ability of anesthesiologists over that achieved when provided only with the Mallampati (MP) score and the thyromental distance (TMD). We further hypothesized that human observers would implicitly bias their predictions toward more sensitive determination of difficult airways, rather than more specific determination of easy airways. ⋯ Anesthesiologists can derive useful information from facial appearance that enhances the prediction of a difficult airway over that achieved when presented with MP and TMD data alone. Anesthesiologists implicitly bias their predictions toward detection of difficult airways, compared with the true incidence of difficult airways, at the expense of accuracy and specificity. This behavior may be rational for cognitive tasks in which the costs of failure are strongly asymmetric.
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Review Historical Article
Clinical applications of targeted temperature management.
Targeted temperature management (TTM) has been investigated experimentally and used clinically for over 100 years. The initial rationale for the clinical application of TTM, historically referred to as therapeutic hypothermia, was to decrease the metabolic rate, allowing the injured brain time to heal. Subsequent research demonstrated the temperature dependence of diverse cellular mechanisms including endothelial dysfunction, production of reactive oxygen species, and apoptosis. ⋯ Additionally, TTM has been demonstrated to improve outcomes for neonatal patients with anoxic brain injury secondary to hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy. Trials are currently under way, or have yielded conflicting results in, examining the utility of TTM for the treatment of ischemic stroke, traumatic brain injury, and acute myocardial infarction. In this review, we place TTM in historic context, discuss the pathophysiologic rationale for its use, review the general concept of a TTM protocol for the management of brain injury, address some of the common side effects encountered when lowering human body temperature, and examine the data for its use in diverse disease conditions with in-depth examination of TTM for postarrest care and pediatric applications.
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The work hours of Norwegian physicians are under scrutiny because of an increased public focus on patient safety. Ample international research indicate harmful effects of doctor fatigue based on studies on physicians working long weeks and on-call shifts of more than 30 consecutive hours. There is a lack of research on effects relevant for short or intermediate length of work weeks and call shifts. This study intended to study cognitive effects of short or intermediate duration in-hospital calls. ⋯ Reaction times were increased after 18 h night calls and non-significant increases in reaction times were apparent after the other on-call shifts. Self reported sleepiness was increased post-call. We were not able to conclude whether executive function or memory was negatively affected post-call.