Paediatric anaesthesia
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Paediatric anaesthesia · Mar 2018
Comparative Study Observational StudyCuffed endotracheal tubes in infants less than 3 kg: A retrospective cohort study.
Cuffed endotracheal tubes are being increasingly used in infants; however, current evidence in the literature mostly includes infants ≥ 3-kg weight. ⋯ This retrospective study with a small sample size found that Microcuff® cuffed endotracheal tubes may be safe in neonates < 3 kg. Well-designed randomized controlled trials are needed to address this issue definitively.
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Paediatric anaesthesia · Mar 2018
Identification of perioperative pulmonary aspiration in children using quality assurance and hospital administrative billing data.
Perioperative aspiration is a rare but potentially devastating complication, occurring in 1-10 per 10 000 anesthetics based on studies of quality assurance databases. Quality assurance reporting is known to underestimate the incidence of adverse outcomes, but few large studies use supplementary data sources. This study aims to identify the incidence of and risk factors for perioperative aspiration in children using quality assurance data supplemented by administrative billing records, and to examine the utility of billing data as a supplementary data source. ⋯ Quality assurance data offer an efficient way to measure the incidence of rare events, but may underestimate perioperative complications. International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision codes for aspiration used as a secondary data source were nonspecific for perioperative aspiration, but when combined with record review yielded a 30% increase in identified cases of aspiration over quality assurance data alone. The use of administrative data therefore holds potential for supplementing quality assurance studies of rare complications.
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Paediatric anaesthesia · Mar 2018
Role of ultrasound guided epidural anesthesia for lower limb surgery in children with previously repaired meningomyelocele.
Children that have had a meningomyelocele repair often present for hip and bilateral lower limb surgeries. Due to vertebral, epidural, and nerve root abnormalities, placement of epidural catheter is difficult. ⋯ Ultrasound guidance aids in identification of normal intervertebral space and explicitly shows the abnormal space. It can be used as an aid to differentiate between normal and abnormal space in post-meningomyelocele repair.
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Paediatric anaesthesia · Mar 2018
Oesophageal atresia: Are "long gap" patients at greater anesthetic risk?
Long gap oesophageal atresia occurs in approximately 10% of all oesophageal atresia infants and surgical repair is often difficult with significant postoperative complications. Our aim was to describe the perioperative course, morbidity, and early results following repair of long gap oesophageal atresia and to identify factors which may be associated with complications. ⋯ Long gap oesophageal atresia infants have a similar incidence of perioperative complications to other infants with oesophageal atresia. Current surgical approaches to long gap repair, however, are associated with longer anesthetic exposures and require multiple procedures in infancy to achieve oesophageal continuity.