Anesthesia and analgesia
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Anesthesia and analgesia · May 1987
Comparative StudyThe pattern of train-of-four fade after atracurium: influence of different priming doses.
This study was designed to investigate the effect of three different priming doses of atracurium--0.06, 0.07, and 0.08 mg/kg--followed 3 min later by the remainder of a 0.5 mg/kg dose on the relationship between the depression in the first twitch of the train-of-four (T1) and train-of-four (TOF) fade. This relationship was studied after the administration of the full dose of the relaxant in all groups. ⋯ Acceleration of the onset of neuromuscular blockade was, however, evident in all groups that received atracurium in divided doses. The implication is, therefore, that prejunctional activity may not contribute significantly to the acceleration of onset of neuromuscular blockade after administration of atracurium in divided doses, as described in this study.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · May 1987
Comparative StudyPlasma concentrations of epidural bupivacaine in mother and newborn: 0.125% versus 0.375%.
Central venous plasma concentrations of bupivacaine were determined in two groups of 15 parturients each who were given epidural analgesia for labor and vaginal delivery. One group received 10 ml of 0.125% bupivacaine plus epinephrine 1:800,000, the other group received 7 ml of 0.375% bupivacaine plus epinephrine 1:800,000. Plasma concentrations of bupivacaine in the umbilical venous (UV) and the umbilical arterial (UA) blood of their babies were also determined. ⋯ The measured plasma concentrations speak in favor of the less concentrated solution of bupivacaine in epidural analgesia for obstetrics. Seven milliliters of bupivacaine 0.375% is suitable for epidural analgesia in obstetrics but a low concentration-low dose technique, using 10 ml of bupivacaine 0.125% plus epinephrine 1:800,000 is safer. It provides good analgesia with minimal or no motor block and is associated with low maternal and neonatal plasma concentrations of bupivacaine, well below toxic levels and, to our knowledge, lower than in any other study.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Apr 1987
Blood levels of mepivacaine during continuous epidural anesthesia.
Venous blood concentrations of mepivacaine were measured in 30 patients during 5 hr of surgical anesthesia following either multiple epidural injections of mepivacaine with or without epinephrine or continuous epidural infusion of mepivacaine with epinephrine. Patients were divided into three groups: group 1 initially received 10 or 15 ml followed by 10 ml of 2% plain mepivacaine at 1-hr intervals; group 2 received 10 or 15 ml followed by 10 ml of epinephrine-containing 2% mepivacaine at 1-hr intervals; group 3 received 10 or 15 ml followed by a constant infusion of 10 ml/hr of epinephrine-containing 2% mepivacaine. ⋯ The mean blood concentration of mepivacaine in group 3 remained significantly lower than the concentrations in groups 1 and 2 from 3.5 to 5 hr. These results demonstrate that the blood concentrations of mepivacaine are not reduced by the addition of epinephrine to mepivacaine solutions when intermittent epidural injections are repeated more than four times at 1-hr intervals, but that blood mepivacaine levels are reduced below levels seen with intermittent injections by the continuous epidural infusion of epinephrine-containing mepivacaine.