Journal of clinical anesthesia
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This North Carolina case study addresses the migration of anesthesiologists into subspecialty, clinical areas of anesthesiology over a 4-year period (1984 to 1987). Three hundred fourteen members of the North Carolina Society of Anesthesiologists (NCSA) were surveyed using a one-page questionnaire. The response rate was 93.6%. ⋯ Respondents expected additional practice options over the next 3 years with anesthesia for ambulatory diagnostic and therapeutic modalities projected to emerge at the fastest rate. In conclusion, anesthesiologists in North Carolina seem to be filling unmet needs in obstetric and cardiac anesthesia, critical care, ambulatory surgery, and pain therapy units. These observations may represent a vignette of the national scene.
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Apneic, anesthetized patients frequently develop airway obstruction or may be disconnected from ventilatory support. The rate of PaCO2 rise is usually assumed to be equal to that of anesthetized humans who are receiving apneic oxygenation. Apneic oxygenation may eliminate CO2 because it requires a continuous O2 flow. ⋯ Piecewise linear approximation yielded a PaCO2 increase of 12 mmHg during the first minute of apnea, and 3.4 mmHg/minute thereafter. These values should be employed when estimating the duration of apnea from PaCO2 change for anesthetized patients who lack ventilatory support. In addition, it appears that the flows of O2 that most earlier investigators used when delivering apneic oxygenation probably did not eliminate significant CO2 quantities.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
A comparison of vecuronium by continuous infusion with either isoflurane or fentanyl-nitrous oxide anesthesia.
The average infusion rate and efficacy of vecuronium bromide continuous infusions for surgical relaxation in human subjects was evaluated. Nineteen adult patients requiring more than 120 min of neuromuscular blockade for surgery were randomized to receive either fentanyl-nitrous oxide (Group 1) or isoflurane-fentanyl-nitrous oxide (Group 2). Neuromuscular function was monitored using train-of-four evoked electromyography (EMG). ⋯ An infusion of vecuronium at an initial rate of 60.0 micrograms/kg/h was then started and adjusted to maintain the first twitch at 10% of control. The average infusion rate (total infusion dose divided by the duration of the infusion) was 57.2 +/- 14 micrograms/kg/h in Group 1 (n = 10) and 42.4 +/- 12 micrograms/kg/h (n = 9) in Group 2, approximately 25% less (p = 0.02). There was a significant decrease in the infusion rate with time in Group 1 (p = 0.02), but this decrease was not observed in Group 2.
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Approximately 3% of patients undergoing hip arthroplasty develop postoperative sciatic neuropathy. The factors associated with changes in somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEP) and sciatic neuropathy were examined in patients undergoing hip arthroplasty, to evaluate whether the use of intraoperative SSEP could help reduce the incidence of postoperative sciatic neuropathy. Eighty-eight patients were assigned to either monitored or unmonitored groups. ⋯ Both of these patients had flattened SSEP for two or more surgical events (p less than 0.01) and flattened SSEP were present at the end of the surgical procedure. There were no false-negative SSEP changes. Simultaneous amplitude and latency changes appear to be predictive of sciatic nerve function following hip arthroplasty.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Effect of labetalol or lidocaine on the hemodynamic response to intubation: a controlled randomized double-blind study.
Labetalol, a combined alpha 1- and nonselective beta-adrenergic blocking drug, was compared to lidocaine or saline to minimize the hypertensive and tachycardic response to intubation in a controlled randomized double-blind study in patients undergoing surgical procedures under general anesthesia. Forty adult patients were divided into four groups of 10 each: placebo (saline), lidocaine 100 mg, labetalol 5 mg, or labetalol 10 mg. The double-blind preparation was administered as an IV bolus just prior to induction and 2 min before the stimulus of laryngoscopy and intubation. ⋯ Labetalol 10 mg prevented a rise in heart rate after intubation compared to patients who received placebo, lidocaine 100 mg, or labetalol 5 mg. The hypertensive response to intubation was similar in all four groups. Labetalol 10 mg IV just prior to induction of anesthesia is a safe and cost-effective means of preventing tachycardia but not hypertension in response to laryngoscopy and intubation.