Anesthesia and analgesia
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Nov 2014
Randomized Controlled TrialIntraoperative Dexamethasone and Delirium after Cardiac Surgery: A Randomized Clinical Trial.
Delirium is common after cardiac surgery and may be partly related to the systemic inflammatory response triggered by the surgery and the use of cardiopulmonary bypass. We hypothesized that intraoperative administration of high-dose dexamethasone, a drug with potent anti-inflammatory effects, would reduce the incidence of delirium at any time point during the first 4 postoperative days after cardiac surgery. ⋯ The intraoperative administration of dexamethasone did not reduce the incidence or duration of delirium in the first 4 days after cardiac surgery.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Nov 2014
Multicenter StudyVariations in the Risk of Acute Kidney Injury Across Intraabdominal Surgery Procedures.
The literature on perioperative acute kidney injury (AKI) focuses mainly on cardiac and major vascular surgery. Among noncardiac general surgery procedures, intraabdominal general surgery has been identified as high risk for developing AKI, but variations in AKI risk and its impact on 30-day mortality among different types of abdominal surgeries are not well characterized. ⋯ The incidence of AKI and the impact of AKI on 30-day mortality vary markedly across procedures within intraabdominal general surgery. This highlights the importance of preoperative risk stratification and identifies procedure type as a significant risk factor for AKI and 30-day mortality.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Nov 2014
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudySurgical Space Conditions During Low-Pressure Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy with Deep Versus Moderate Neuromuscular Blockade: A Randomized Clinical Study.
Laparoscopic cholecystectomy performed during low intraabdominal pressure (<12 mm Hg) is associated with significantly less postoperative pain than standard pressure (≥12 mm Hg). The impact on surgical space conditions and safety of operating at lower pressures has not been adequately described, but deep neuromuscular blockade may be beneficial. We investigated if deep muscle relaxation would be associated with a higher proportion of procedures with "optimal" surgical space conditions compared with moderate relaxation during low-pressure (8 mm Hg) laparoscopic cholecystectomy. ⋯ Deep neuromuscular blockade was associated with surgical space conditions that were marginally better than with moderate muscle relaxation during low-pressure laparoscopic cholecystectomy.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Nov 2014
Observational StudyMeasured Versus Predicted Blood Propofol Concentrations in Children During Scoliosis Surgery.
Propofol anesthesia is preferred during scoliosis surgery because it suppresses evoked potential spinal cord function less than other drugs and better enables the detection of spinal cord ischemia. In this study, we determined the difference between the true and predicted blood propofol levels during target-controlled infusions in children during scoliosis surgery. ⋯ Propofol target-controlled infusion models had poor performance characteristics in children undergoing scoliosis surgery. Point-of-care propofol assay may enable adjustment of the infusion to better achieve the intended blood level.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Nov 2014
Why do pregnant women die? A review of maternal deaths from 1990 to 2010 at the university of alabama at birmingham.
The number of reported pregnancy-related deaths in the United States steadily increased from 7.2 deaths per 100,000 live births in 1987 to a high of 17.8 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2009. Compared to Caucasian women, African American women were nearly 4 times as likely to die from childbirth. To better understand the reason for this trend, we conducted a case-control study at University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Hospital. Our primary study hypothesis was that women who died at UAB were more likely to be African American than women in a control group who delivered an infant at UAB and did not die. We expected to find a difference in race proportions and other patient characteristics that would further help to elucidate the cause of a racial disparity in maternal deaths. ⋯ We did not observe a racial disparity in maternal deaths at UAB Hospital. We suggest that the next step toward understanding racial differences in maternal deaths reported in the United States should be directed at the health care delivery outside the tertiary care hospital setting, particularly at eliminating access barriers to health care for all women.