Journal of anesthesia
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Journal of anesthesia · Aug 2012
Case ReportsAcute ascending aortic intramural hematoma as a complication of the endovascular repair of a Type B aortic dissection.
Endovascular aortic graft repair (EVAR) for patients with Type B aortic dissection is a less invasive surgical procedure (compared to traditional open surgical repair) that is associated with less morbidity and shortened recovery times. However, there are notable complications for the patients undergoing EVAR. We report a patient who was brought to our hospital with a Type B dissection and underwent a thoracic EVAR but suffered iatrogenic aortic injury resulting in cardiac tamponade. This case study highlights the importance of intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography to facilitate early detection of possible EVAR complications.
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Journal of anesthesia · Aug 2012
Pre-anesthesia systolic blood pressure increases with age regardless of sex.
Pre-anesthesia hypertension (PAH) is the temporary elevation of blood pressure (BP), compared with normal ambulatory recorded BP or self-measured BP at home, in patients waiting for operation in the operating room (OR) before anesthesia induction. In general, the incidence of sustained hypertension (SH) increases progressively with age and the increase is greater in males than in females. In this study, we investigated the influence of age and sex on PAH. ⋯ Age is an important clinical factor related to PAH. Pre-anesthesia sBP and the change in pre-anesthesia sBP increase progressively with age regardless of sex. These findings suggest that the higher BP seen in the elderly in the OR before anesthesia induction, as reported previously, might be explained in part by a greater impact of PAH in older people.
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Journal of anesthesia · Aug 2012
Feasibility and safety of transglottic bronchoscopy in mechanically ventilated sheep.
Although bronchoscopy can be safely performed through endotracheal tube in most intubated critically ill patients, sometimes it could lead to complications such as hypoxia and high airway pressures. Theoretically, transglottic bronchoscopy (TGB) does not interfere with mechanical ventilation and could avoid these complications. In a two-period crossover study, we compared this technique with trans-endotracheal tube bronchoscopy (TEB) in normal anesthetized sheep. ⋯ Although TGB is time consuming and less convenient than TEB, it has minimal interference with mechanical ventilation. Expertise with this technique could be useful in patients with anticipated significant hypoxia and high airway pressures during bronchoscopy.