Canadian journal of anaesthesia = Journal canadien d'anesthésie
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Biography Historical Article
The contribution of Canadian anaesthetists to the evolution of cardiac surgery.
There have been great improvements in the management of patients with heart disease over the past 50 yr much of which has been due to the development of surgical procedures for the correction of acquired and congenital cardiac abnormalities. A great deal has been written about the surgeons and the innovative procedures they developed. They were undoubtedly courageous, imaginative, knowledgeable and skillful. Little is written about the anaesthetists who often worked in the laboratory with the surgeons and provided anaesthesia for patients having this surgery which, in the early days, was experimental. The purpose of this article is to present the contributions made by Canadian anaesthetists to the evolution of cardiac surgery. ⋯ An analysis of the literature and personal, verbal and written communications with anaesthetists who experienced the trials and tribulations of anaesthesia for these early surgical procedures clearly indicates that Canadians were at the forefront in advancing anaesthesia for cardiac surgery.
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To investigate cuff types for potential use in late childhood and early adolescence for appropriate fit. ⋯ Patients aged 8 to 10 yr have a limiting internal diameter at the cricoid of 8 to 10 mm. Their unstretched tracheal diameter below the cricoid is only about 11 mm. The actual outside diameters of "low pressure" cuffs chosen by commonly used formulae considerably exceed the limiting diameters of eight to ten year old patients, even considering recommended compensation factors. Analysis of background data indicates that these problems are especially aggravated at this age by non-linear growth of the cricoid.
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To determine the composition and solubility of the precipitate formed by thiopentone and vecuronium in vitro. ⋯ The precipitate formed by thiopentone and vecuronium in vitro consisted of thiopentone acid, which was insoluble in human plasma.