Anesthesia and analgesia
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Jan 1999
Anesthesia for cesarean section and acid aspiration prophylaxis: a German survey.
We surveyed routine anesthetic practice and measures to prevent acid aspiration syndrome (AAS) in patients undergoing cesarean section (CS) throughout Germany. Of 1061 questionnaires, 81.9% were returned. For scheduled CS, general anesthesia was used in 63% of cases, and for urgent CS, it was used in 82% of cases. Regional anesthesia was used less often for both scheduled and urgent CS in smaller (< or =500 deliveries/yr; 28% and 16%, respectively) than in medium-sized (500-1000 deliveries/yr; 42% and 19%, respectively) or major obstetric departments (>1000 deliveries/yr; 45% and 21%, respectively). Among the regional techniques, epidural anesthesia (59%) was preferred more than spinal anesthesia (40%) in scheduled CS. In urgent CS, spinal anesthesia predominated (56% vs 42%). Pharmacological AAS prophylaxis is routinely used in 69% (68%) of departments before elective (urgent) CS under general anesthesia and in 52% under regional anesthesia. H2-blocking drugs are preferred for AAS prophylaxis over H2-blocker plus sodium citrate and sodium citrate alone. Both the incidence of and the mortality from AAS at CS are very low in Germany (<1 fatality per year). Nevertheless, AAS prophylaxis deserves more widespread use in obstetric anesthesia and in other patients at risk (e.g., children, outpatients). ⋯ According to a countrywide survey, the use of regional anesthesia for cesarean section and pharmacological prophylaxis of acid aspiration syndrome is considerably less common in Germany than in the United States, United Kingdom, or other European countries.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Jan 1999
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical TrialConcentration of lidocaine affects intensity of sensory block during lumbar epidural anesthesia.
We investigated the effects of a twofold difference in concentration and volume of lidocaine on lumbar epidural block using a cutaneous current perception threshold (CPT) quantitative sensory testing device. Twenty ASA I patients scheduled for elective gynecological surgery were randomly divided into two equal groups to receive either 20 mL of 1% lidocaine or 10 mL of 2% lidocaine through an epidural catheter inserted at the L1-2 interspace. CPTs at 2000-, 250-, and 5-Hz stimulation and sensation to light touch, temperature, and pinprick at ipsilateral dermatomes V, T9, and L2 were measured before and every 5 min until 60 min after the epidural lidocaine. Epidural anesthesia with both solutions produced a significant increase in all CPTs at dermatomes T9 and L2. Alterations in CPTs were similar for both groups at T9 but were significantly greater in patients given 2% lidocaine than in those given 1% lidocaine at L2. There were no differences in the upper level of sensory block to cold, pinprick, and touch between the two groups. We conclude that lumbar epidural anesthesia with 10 mL of 2% lidocaine produces more intense blockade of both large- and small-diameter sensory nerve fibers than that with 20 mL of 1% lidocaine. ⋯ The effects of local anesthetic concentration and volume on the quality of epidural anesthesia have not been adequately investigated. The results of the present study suggest that the concentration affects the intensity of sensory block during epidural anesthesia with lidocaine.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Jan 1999
Clinical TrialOxygen delivery during retrograde cerebral perfusion in humans.
Retrograde cerebral perfusion (RCP) potentially delivers metabolic substrate to the brain during surgery using hypothermic circulatory arrest (HCA). Serial measurements of O2 extraction ratio (OER), PCO2, and pH from the RCP inflow and outflow were used to determine the time course for O2 delivery in 28 adults undergoing aortic reconstruction using HCA with RCP. HCA was instituted after systemic cooling on cardiopulmonary bypass for 3 min after the electroencephalogram became isoelectric. RCP with oxygenated blood at 10 degrees C was administered at an internal jugular venous pressure of 20-25 mm Hg. Serial analyses of blood oxygen, carbon dioxide, pH, and hemoglobin concentration were made in samples from the RCP inflow (superior vena cava) and outflow (innominate and left carotid arteries) at different times after institution of RCP. Nineteen patients had no strokes, five patients had preoperative strokes, and four patients had intraoperative strokes. In the group of patients without strokes, HCA with RCP was initiated at a mean nasopharyngeal temperature of 14.3 degrees C with mean RCP flow rate of 220 mL/min, which lasted 19-70 min. OER increased over time to a maximal detected value of 0.66 and increased to 0.5 of its maximal detected value 15 min after initiation of HCA. The RCP inflow-outflow gradient for PCO2 (slope 0.73 mm Hg/min; P < 0.001) and pH (slope 0.007 U/min; P < 0.001) changed linearly over time after initiation of HCA. In the group of patients with preoperative or intraoperative strokes, the OER and the RCP inflow-outflow gradient for PCO2 changed significantly more slowly over time after HCA compared with the group of patients without strokes. During RCP, continued CO2 production and increased O2 extraction over time across the cerebral vascular bed suggest the presence of viable, but possibly ischemic tissue. Reduced cerebral metabolism in infarcted brain regions may explain the decreased rate of O2 extraction during RCP in patients with strokes. ⋯ Examining the time course of oxygen extraction, carbon dioxide production, and pH changes from the retrograde cerebral perfusate provided a means to assess metabolic activity during hypothermic circulatory arrest.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Jan 1999
The growth of microorganisms in propofol and mixtures of propofol and lidocaine.
Propofol emulsion supports bacterial growth. Extrinsic contamination of propofol has been implicated as an etiological event in postsurgical infections. When added to propofol, local anesthetics (e.g., lidocaine) alleviate the pain associated with injecting it. Because local anesthetics have antimicrobial activity, we determined whether lidocaine would inhibit microbial growth by comparing the growth of four microorganisms in propofol and in mixtures of propofol and lidocaine. Known quanta of Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Candida albicans were inoculated into solutions of 1% propofol, 0.2% lidocaine in propofol, 0.5% lidocaine in propofol, 0.5% lidocaine in isotonic sodium chloride solution, and 0.9% isotonic sodium chloride solution. All microorganisms were taken from stock cultures and incubated for 24 h. Growth of microorganisms in each solution was compared by counting the number of colony-forming units grown from a subculture of the solution at 0, 3, 6, 12 and 24 h. Propofol supported the growth of E. coli and C. albicans. Propofol maintained static levels of S. aureus and was bactericidal toward P. aeruginosa. The addition of 0.2% and 0.5% lidocaine to propofol failed to prevent the growth of the studied microorganisms. The effect of 0.5% lidocaine in isotonic sodium chloride solution did not differ from the effects of isotonic sodium chloride solution alone. We conclude that lidocaine, when added to propofol in clinically acceptable concentrations, does not exhibit antimicrobial properties. ⋯ Local anesthetics such as lidocaine have antimicrobial activity. Propofol supports the growth of bacteria responsible for infection. Bacteria were added to propofol and propofol mixed with lidocaine. The addition of lidocaine to propofol in clinically relevant concentrations did not prevent the growth of bacteria. The addition of lidocaine to propofol cannot prevent infection from contaminated propofol.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Jan 1999
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical TrialThe effects on resting ventilation of intravenous infusions of morphine or sameridine, a novel molecule with both local anesthetic and opioid properties.
Sameridine has both local anesthetic and partial mu-opioid receptor agonistic properties. The aim of this single-blinded, randomized, three-way cross-over study of 12 subjects was to investigate the effects on resting ventilation of two doses of sameridine: 0.15 mg/kg (S-Small) and 0.73 mg/kg (S-Large) compared with 0.10 mg/kg morphine. Each drug was infused IV over 20 min. Ventilation was measured by pneumotachography and in-line capnography, and sedation was rated by the subjects using a visual analog scale (VAS). Plasma was collected and analyzed for sameridine and morphine. At the end of drug infusion, minute ventilation (VE) and tidal volume (VT) were reduced in the S-Large group, and VE was reduced in the morphine group. End-tidal CO2 increased in both groups (P < 0.05), but respiratory rates remained unchanged. In the S-Small group, no ventilatory changes were recorded. In the S-Large group, the median sedation score was 6.8 cm with corresponding values in the morphine and S-Small groups of 3.3 and 2.5 cm, respectively. There was a relationship between the plasma concentration of sameridine and the depression of ventilation. We conclude that sameridine influences resting ventilation and that this effect is directly related to plasma concentrations of sameridine. From a ventilatory aspect, a clinical dose of sameridine with both local anesthetic and opioid properties seems safe. ⋯ Sameridine, a molecule with both local anesthetic and analgesic properties, impaired resting ventilation after a large IV dose (0.73 mg/kg), more so than 0.10 mg/kg IV morphine. A clinical dose of sameridine (0.15 mg/kg) did not have any effects on ventilation.