Acta anaesthesiologica Scandinavica
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Acta Anaesthesiol Scand · May 1988
Comparative StudyDifficulties with tooth protectors in endotracheal intubation.
The suitability of three tooth protectors for routine use during endotracheal intubation was studied in 300 consecutive patients undergoing elective operations under general anaesthesia. The main disadvantages of the protectors were lack of space and the consequent difficulty of guiding the endotracheal tube into the larynx, and poor visibility, especially when the Camo protector was used. These difficulties could be avoided in most cases by cutting off the right angle of the Camo protector. ⋯ Two patients lost a maxillary incisor despite the proper use of a protector (Denex). Thus the use of a tooth protector alone does not guarantee avoidance of dental trauma. Better results could be obtained by improving the design of the protectors and by careful pre-anaesthetic dental examination.
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Acta Anaesthesiol Scand · Apr 1988
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial Controlled Clinical TrialEpidural sufentanil for intra- and postoperative analgesia in thoracic surgery: a comparative study with intravenous sufentanil.
A comparative study was undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of epidural sufentanil in providing intra- and postoperative analgesia during thoracic surgery. Sufentanil was chosen on the basis of its high lipid solubility and its potent opiate receptor binding. Epidural sufentanil was compared with intravenous sufentanil as the major intraoperative analgetic agent in an anesthesia regimen with midazolam and nitrous oxide. ⋯ Sufentanil provided good analgesia with a very fast onset and a mean duration of almost 7 h. Severe respiratory depression was observed in one patient within 1 h of extubation, probably due to the combined effects of the narcotic administration and residual midazolam. It is concluded that 50 micrograms of sufentanil administered in the thoracic epidural space provides valuable intraoperative analgesia which can easily be extended into the postoperative period, although all necessary precautions for epidural opiate administration should be taken.
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Acta Anaesthesiol Scand · Apr 1988
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialCardiac function and sympathoadrenal activity in the newborn after cesarean section under spinal and epidural anesthesia.
Left ventricular systolic time intervals, bupivacaine concentrations, adrenaline and noradrenaline levels were determined in 19 neonates delivered by elective cesarean section. Ten of the cesarean sections were performed under spinal and nine under epidural anesthesia. ⋯ The differences in catecholamine and bupivacaine concentrations were not associated with differences in left ventricular dynamics, or the timing of postnatal circulatory changes. The significant exposure of the neonate to bupivacaine, at maternal epidural anesthesia, seems to have no negative effect on early neonatal circulation in the healthy term infant.
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Acta Anaesthesiol Scand · Apr 1988
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialRespiratory effects of nitrous oxide during halothane or enflurane anaesthesia in children.
The respiratory effects of nitrous oxide (N2O) were studied during halothane and enflurane anaesthesia in 12 children (mean age 46.4 +/- 29.3 months, mean weight 15.3 +/- 4.2 kg) during surgery under continuous extradural anaesthesia. Four equipotent anaesthetic states were studied in random order: 1) halothane 1 MAC in oxygen, 2) halothane 0.5 MAC + 50% N2O, 3) enflurane 1 MAC in oxygen, 4) enflurane 0.5 MAC +50% N2O. End-tidal fractions of CO2 (PetCO2) and halothane and enflurane were measured using infrared analysers. ⋯ During enflurane anaesthesia, PetCO2 was less increased when N2O was substituted for enflurane, owing to a significant increase in respiratory frequency. A marked decrease in VE together with an increase in PetCO2 was observed during enflurane anaesthesia (states 3 and 4) when compared to the corresponding states during halothane anaesthesia (states 1 and 2). The respiratory depressant effect of enflurane is greater than that of halothane in unpremedicated children, even when substituting N2O for an equal MAC fraction of enflurane.2+ The effect of N2O on respiratory patterns seems to depend on the inhalational agent used and/or on the vesting respiratory frequency.
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Acta Anaesthesiol Scand · Apr 1988
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial Controlled Clinical TrialOpioid treatment for radiating cancer pain: oral administration vs. epidural techniques.
In order to determine the optimal pain treatment for patients with cancer involvement of the brachial or lumbar nerve plexuses, a prospective comparative study was carried out using peroral opioid therapy (SO), epidural opioid by a conventional tunnelled epidural catheter (CE) or an epidural catheter connected to an implanted injection port (Port). Pain relief, measured by a visual analog scale (VAS), was similar and adequate in every group already after the first 24 h. CNS side-effects were less frequent and the Karnofsky performance grades slightly superior in the epidural groups. ⋯ Both epidural techniques seem suitable for long-term pain therapy. Technical improvements are needed in the epidural catheter and the port. The long-term epidural catheter does not seem to cause any major changes in the histology of the dura mater or the connective tissue of the epidural space.