Otolaryngology--head and neck surgery : official journal of American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
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Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg · Nov 1991
Management of otolaryngic patients susceptible to malignant hyperthermia without dantrolene.
Malignant hyperthermia (MH) is an adverse reaction most frequently associated with the administration of halogenated inhalational anesthetic agents and the depolarizing muscle relaxant succinylcholine. Characteristic findings are a hypermetabolic state accompanied by extreme hyperpyrexia, acidosis, rhabdomyolysis, and generalized muscle rigidity, often involving the masseter muscles. Dantrolene sodium, which was approved in 1979 by the FDA for use in the prevention of MH in high-risk patients, has neurologic and gastrointestinal side effects. ⋯ There were no complications. Concomitant muscle biopsies were performed, and caffeine/halothane contracture studies were completed in 18 of these patients, demonstrating 11 susceptible or equivocal responses. The data suggest that children undergoing common otolaryngic procedures who are at risk for development of MH may be safely anesthetized without the use of prophylactic dantrolene sodium.