Journal of clinical anesthesia
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Does the incidence of sore throat postoperatively increase with the use of a traditional intubation blade or the GlideScope?
The GlideScope video-guided laryngoscope is an alternative standard of care for rescue laryngoscopies when direct laryngoscopy is unsuccessful. During postoperative checks by an anesthesiologist, it was noticed that patients who reported sore throat often required GlideScope laryngoscopy. Consequently, it is difficult to determine whether postoperative sore throats are caused by irritation inflicted by multiple laryngoscopic attempts or the actual utilization of the GlideScope itself. The goal of this study was to determine whether the use of the GlideScope leads to a greater or lesser incidence of sore throat when compared with traditional laryngoscope blades used for intubation. ⋯ Use of the GlideScope videolaryngoscopy was not significantly associated with increased occurrence of postoperative sore throat when compared with traditional intubation techniques. Our results may enable more trainees to acquire intubation skills with the GlideScope during an initial intubation attempt in patients with American Society of Anesthesiologist grades 1 to 3, with optimization of patient satisfaction in respect to postoperative sore throats. In addition, a provider's choice of intubation technique based on either Macintosh/Miller blades or the GlideScope does not significantly impact a patient's risk of postoperative sore throat.
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Review Case Reports
Thoracic epidural analgesia in a child with multiple traumatic rib fractures.
The morbidity and mortality associated with blunt thoracic trauma are significant and can be multisystem in nature. Of these, pulmonary complications, including ventilatory impairment secondary to pain, have been recognized to be the most consequential. Although several analgesic strategies have emerged, thoracic epidural analgesia (TEA) has arguably demonstrated superior efficacy and is used frequently in adults. ⋯ This low rate of use likely reflects one or more of several factors potentially encountered when considering the use of TEA in pediatric chest wall trauma. Among them are (1) uncertainty regarding safety and efficacy; (2) the technical challenges of pediatric thoracic epidural placement, including technique and equipment concerns; and (3) drug selection, dosing, and toxicity. The following case review describes the successful application of TEA in a 4-year-old boy after multiple traumatic rib fractures and associated pneumothorax and pulmonary contusion.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Local anesthetic injection deep to the fascia iliaca at the level of the inguinal ligament: the pattern of distribution and effects on the obturator nerve.
The femoral, lateral femoral cutaneous, and obturator nerves (ONs) can reportedly be blocked using a single-injection deep to the fascia iliaca (FI) at the level of the inguinal ligament. Two commonly used methods (the FI compartment and 3-in-1 blocks) have produced inconsistent results with respect to local anesthetic distribution and effect on the ON. To date, no study of either method has been performed using advanced imaging techniques to document both needle placement and local anesthetic distribution. We report the outcome of a series of 3-in-1 and FI blocks performed using ultrasound to guide needle position and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to define local anesthetic distribution. ⋯ Ultrasound and MRI show consistent superior extension of local anesthetic to the level of the retroperitoneum for both techniques. There was reliable clinical effect on the femoral and lateral femoral cutaneous nerves. However, none of the injections produced evidence of ON block either at the level of the retroperitoneum or the inguinal ligament.
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Controlled Clinical Trial
Effects of mild hypoalbuminemia on the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of dexmedetomidine in patients after major abdominal or thoracic surgery.
To explore the effects of mild hypoalbuminemia on pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of dexmedetomidine in patients after major abdominal or thoracic surgery. ⋯ Sedation and adverse reactions of dexmedetomidine infusion did not differ significantly between patients with mild hypoalbuminemia and normoalbuminemia, although its volume of distribution at steady state increased and elimination half-life shortened in patients with hypoalbuminemia. This suggests that dexmedetomidine infusion can safely be used in mild hypoalbuminemia patients after major abdominal or thoracic surgery.