Anaesthesia and intensive care
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Sep 2010
Randomized Controlled TrialThe effect of remote ischaemic preconditioning on myocardial injury in patients undergoing off-pump coronary artery bypass graft surgery.
In several recent clinical trials on cardiac surgery patients, remote ischaemic preconditioning (RIPC) showed a powerful myocardial protective effect. However the effect of RIPC has not been studied in patients undergoing off-pump coronary artery bypass graft surgery. We evaluated whether RIPC could induce myocardial protection in off-pump coronary artery bypass graft surgery patients. ⋯ Although RIPC reduced the total amount of troponin I (area under the curve of troponin increase) by 26%, it did not reach statistical significance (RIPC group 53.2 +/- 72.9 hours x ng/ml vs control group 67.4 +/- 97.7 hours x ng/ml, P = 0.281). In this study, RIPC by upper limb ischaemia reduced the postoperative myocardial enzyme elevation in off-pump coronary artery bypass graft surgery patients, but this did not reach statistical significance. Further study with a larger number of patients may be needed to fully evaluate the clinical effect of RIPC in off-pump coronary artery bypass graft surgery patients.
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Sep 2010
Prognosis and resuscitation status of critically ill patients with lung cancer admitted to the intensive care unit.
The aims of the study were to assess the intensive care unit (ICU) outcome for critically ill patients with lung cancer to determine the risk factors for mortality and to examine the resuscitation status on admission and during their ICU course. Data was collected from May 1999 to March 2009 for patients with lung cancer admitted to the ICU. ⋯ The majority of patients were full resuscitation on admission to ICU The resuscitation status was changed in 56% of patients during the ICU course. It is suggested that end-of-life decisions should be addressed earlier in these patients' illnesses.
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Sep 2010
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyComparison of automated intermittent low volume bolus with continuous infusion for labour epidural analgesia.
Delivery of local anaesthetics via automated intermittent bolus has been shown to improve epidural analgesia compared to delivery via continuous epidural infusion. However the optimal bolus volume has not been investigated. This randomised, double-blind study compared the analgesic efficacy of automated intermittent bolus (volume 2.5 ml every 15 minutes) with that of a continuous epidural infusion (10 ml/hour) for the maintenance of labour epidural analgesia, to determine whether the advantages previously demonstrated for automated intermittent bolus over continuous epidural infusion are retained at this low bolus volume. ⋯ The primary study outcome was the incidence of pain during labour that required management with supplemental epidural analgesia. There were no significant differences between the two regimens in terms of breakthrough pain (automated intermittent bolus 36% [9/25] vs continuous epidural infusion 32% [8/25], P = 0.77). At the doses used in this study, maintenance of labour analgesia using automated intermittent bolus at a bolus volume of 2.5 ml every 15 minutes does not decrease the incidence of breakthrough pain or improve analgesic efficacy compared to continuous epidural infusion.
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Sep 2010
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyA comparison of two different doses of rectal ketamine added to 0.5 mg x kg(-1) midazolam and 0.02 mg x kg(-1) atropine in infants and young children.
In some circumstances, a high degree of sedation that results in a child being unconscious at the time of parental separation is desirable. We set out to investigate the efficacy and safety of a rectal premedication regimen designed to produce this increased level of sedation. Sixty-seven children aged two to 24 months were randomised into two groups. ⋯ Sedation scores were significantly increased at both time points. There was no difference between groups in vital signs at the time of parental separation and no adverse respiratory events occurred during the study period. In cases where a high degree of sedation following premedication in infants and toddlers is desired, the addition of 8 mg x kg(-1) ketamine to 0.5 mg x kg(-1) midazolam and 0.02 mg x kg(-1) atropine administered rectally is more efficacious than 4 mg x kg(-1) ketamine.
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Sep 2010
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyRemifentail infusion for paediatric bronchoscopic foreign body removal: comparison of sevoflurane with propofol for anaesthesia supplementation for bronchoscope insertion.
The study compared sevoflurane or propofol as anaesthesia supplements to remifentanil infusion and topical local anaesthesia for insertion of a rigid bronchoscope for bronchial foreign body removal in children aged one to three years. Seventy children were randomly allocated to two groups to receive remifentanil infusion at 0.2 microg x kg(-1) x min(-1) with either sevoflurane or propofol supplements for insertion of the rigid bronchoscope. Heart rate and systolic blood pressure before anaesthesia, prior to and on insertion of the bronchoscope and one, three, five, seven and ten minutes after insertion were measured. ⋯ The sevoflurane group had a lower incidence of cough than the propofol group. No significant difference was detected in the incidence of apnoea between groups. It can be concluded that remifentanil infusion with modest use of general anaesthetic agents facilitates rigid bronchoscopy successfully in children.