Anaesthesia and intensive care
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Jan 2012
Multicenter StudyBlood loss and replacement for paediatric cranioplasty in Australia - a prospective national audit.
We prospectively audited blood loss and blood replacement in every child less than 24 months of age undergoing cranioplasty for craniosynostosis in Australia during 2008, in order to obtain more accurate data for the discussion of perioperative transfusion risk. A total of 127 cases were performed at seven centres. There were no directed or autologous blood donations. ⋯ Children with recognised craniofacial syndromes and those undergoing repeat surgery appeared to have greater blood loss and blood product exposure. There were two cases of sudden massive haemorrhage secondary to dural venous sinus tear, but no death or perioperative cardiac arrest. These findings indicate that blood loss requiring blood product replacement is common in patients <24 months of age undergoing cranioplasty for craniosynostosis, particularly in patients undergoing FOA and CVR.
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Jan 2012
Incidence, risk factors and outcome associations of intra-abdominal hypertension in critically ill patients.
Intra-abdominal hypertension (IAH) and abdominal compartment syndrome (ACS) are significantly associated with morbidity and mortality. We performed a prospective observational study and applied recently published consensus criteria to measure and describe the incidence of IAH and ACS, identify risk factors for their development and define their association with outcomes. We studied 100 consecutive patients admitted to our general intensive care unit. ⋯ We conclude that, in a general population of critically ill patients, using consensus guidelines, IAH was common and significantly associated with obesity and sepsis on admission. In a minority of patients, IAH was associated with abdominal compartment syndrome. In this cohort IAH was not associated with an increased risk of mortality.
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Jan 2012
End-of-life practices in a tertiary intensive care unit in Saudi Arabia.
Our aim was to evaluate end-of-life practices in a tertiary intensive care unit in Saudi Arabia. A prospective observational study was conducted in the medical-surgical intensive care unit of a teaching hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Over the course of the one-year study period, 176 patients died and 77% of these deaths were preceded by end-of-life decisions. ⋯ The patients' families or surrogates were informed for 88% of the decisions and all decisions were documented in the patients' medical records. Despite religious and cultural values, more than three-quarters of the patients whose deaths were preceded by end-of-life decisions gave do-not-resuscitate decisions before death. These decisions should be made early in the patients' stay in the intensive care unit.
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Jan 2012
Laptops and smartphones in the operating theatre - how does our knowledge of vigilance, multi-tasking and anaesthetist performance help us in our approach to this new distraction?
There has been no research performed concerning the effects of the use of laptops and smartphones in the operating theatre on anaesthetist performance, yet these devices are now in frequent use. This article explores the implications of this phenomenon. The cognitive and environmental factors that support or detract from vigilance and multi-tasking are explored and core anaesthetic literature on the nature of anaesthetic work and operating theatre distractions is reviewed. ⋯ All anaesthetists need to be mindful of the limits to the human attention span which requires observation and limiting distractions. Trainees have less experience and less 'attentional' safety margin, so should avoid adding additional distractions such as discretionary use of laptops or smartphones to their operating theatre work. We provide recommendations for future research on the specific advantages and disadvantages of pervasive computing in the operative theatre.
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Anaesth Intensive Care · Jan 2012
Comparative StudyAudit of extrapleural local anaesthetic infusion in neonates following repair of tracheo-oesophageal fistulae and oesophageal atresia via thoracotomy.
In order to reduce postoperative opioid requirement, extrapleural local anaesthetic infusion dosing recommendations and guidelines for extrapleural catheter insertion were developed in our institution for 'extubatable' neonates requiring short-gap neonatal tracheo-oesophageal fistula/oesophageal atresia repair (via thoracotomy) and audited prospectively. Data audited included patient characteristics, analgesia details and ventilation duration. We divided patients into two groups: group 1 - term patients (=36 weeks gestational age) with birth-weights =2.5 kg; group 2 - pre-term patients (<36 weeks gestational age), with birth weights <2.5 kg and those with co-morbidities. ⋯ Most group 1 patients (77%) were extubated immediately postoperatively; 20% had short duration ventilation (median 15 hours, range 11 to 37 hours); one required longer-term ventilation (231 hours). 82% of group 2 were ventilated for a median of 72 hours (range 3 to 140 hours). Review of patients' co-morbidities facilitated guideline revision. These now specify use in neonates requiring short-gap tracheo-oesophageal fistula/oesophageal atresia repair who are term at =36 weeks gestational age and =2.5 kg birth-weight, anticipated as ready for extubation either immediately or shortly after surgery.